Brentford and Queens Park Rangers are interested in making a potential move for Oxford United defender Rob Dickie this summer, according to West London Sport.
Dickie, 24, was an integral part of the Oxford side that made the League One play-off final this season under Karl Robinson, and the defender’s performances helped to make the U’s one of the most difficult teams to break down in the English third tier, but he is now entering the final year of his current deal.
Brentford could still yet be spending the summer preparing for life in the Premier League with the Bees set to take on Fulham in the Championship play-off final, but having had success with recruiting Ethan Pinnock last term off the back of a strong campaign in League they could look to repeat the trick with a move for Dickie.
QPR, meanwhile, will be looking to add to their defensive options this summer as they look to make further progress under Mark Warburton, and they will need to find a replacement for Grant Hall who departed the club at the end of his contract and went onto sign for Middlesbrough.
The ultimate QPR end of season quiz – Can you get 14/14?
It is thought that Brentford have been tracking the defender for a while now, while QPR have become alerted to his situation given he is currently entering the final year of his deal with Oxford heading into this summer.
The verdict
Dickie has certainly been an impressive performer during his time at Oxford since he joined them from Reading, and he looks like he could be ready to make the step up to a higher level after Robinson’s side missed out on promotion to the Championship.
Brentford’s recruitment policy is usually very strong, and they have already picked up both Tariqe Fosu and Shandon Baptiste from Oxford in January, so the Bees could look to add yet another talented member of Robinson’s squad to their side.
However, it would be interesting to see if the Bees pursue a move if they earn promotion. While QPR probably look like a suitable destination for Dickie with Warburton playing a similar style of possession-based passing football with the R's as he has been used to with Oxford.