Rotherham United midfielder Matt Crooks is a man in demand this summer, with clubs in the Championship and League One chasing his signature.

The Millers may be in some financial trouble after reportedly asking their players to go on furlough this summer, so player sales may need to go through in order to raise some funds if that club request to the squad is rejected.

And Crooks is one of the standouts of the Rotherham squad having scored six goals last season in the Championship - Ipswich Town are interested but they face second tier competition in the form of Derby County.

Right now the Rams cannot make a move for Crooks as they're barred from doing any deals that involve transfer fees, but they'll be hoping to get their takeover issues and legal battle with the EFL sorted so Wayne Rooney can operate in the market.

Would Crooks be the right fit for County though? His ideal position is playing just off the striker - that is where he is most effective but he's also capable of playing deeper in midfield as well.

Rooney tends to favour a 4-2-3-1 formation but the issue is he already has multiple players whose best position is probably that attacking midfield role that Crooks plays his best stuff in.

That is probably Jason Knight's natural position but the Ireland international is another player who has played deeper and also out wide, whilst young talent Louie Sibley - whilst he may not have had the greatest of seasons in 2020-21 - is still a prospect.

Rooney could play a couple of attacking midfielders together - such as Knight and Crooks - behind one striker but then wingers like Kamil Jozwiak and Tom Lawrence would become neglected, so it's a tough balance to create.

Crooks wouldn't be a guaranteed starter, however Rotherham would probably not be looking for a huge fee considering their apparent issues right now and also the fact that the 27-year-old has just one year remaining on his contract.

Even though the Rams can't make a move right now, that makes Crooks an interesting option for them and when you take into consideration that Knight and Sibley are very slight players and Crooks is a more powerful, bigger option, then a move for him would make complete sense.