Derby County’s striker search has been plunged into further doubt.
Derby County were desperate to add a new striker to their ranks during the January transfer window, with Martyn Waghorn, Conor Washington and Tyreece John-Jules all sidelined.
The Rams spent a majority of the month chasing Sheffield Wednesday veteran Michael Smith, before turning their attention to his teammate Lee Gregory when they failed to land the 32-year-old.
The Owls weren’t willing to let Gregory leave either, so Derby reached last week’s transfer deadline with only Corey Blackett-Taylor and Ebou Adams joining the club.
After that, it came as no surprise that Paul Warne‘s side were linked with a free agent switch.
Dwight Gayle was released by Stoke City the following day, and Derby County were very quickly linked with a move for the 34-year-old.
It was then claimed that the striker’s car had been spotted on the way to Pride Park, leaving fans under the assumption that their club were about to snap him up.
However, Derbyshire Live have now reported that the Rams are ‘not actively pursuing’ a deal for Gayle.
Would Dwight Gayle have been a good signing for Derby County?
Dwight Gayle was once an excellent striker in the EFL, in particular the Championship.
The forward netted 62 goals in 145 games in the second tier, as well as 26 in 145 matches in the Premier League.
Gayle is far from the No.9 he once was and he proved at Stoke City that he isn’t quite as prolific in front of goal anymore, though he could well have done a job in the league below.
James Collins has already shown age doesn’t necessarily matter in League One as he approaches his 34th birthday later this year, while Gayle would have only really needed to make up numbers and provide some cover for the free-scoring Collins.
It’s unclear how much Gayle was earning at the bet365 Stadium though, and if his demands were still quite high then it could have been a costly move for a player who might not have even played that much between now and the summer.
There are still options elsewhere for Derby though, and it definitely seems like a daft idea to not bring in a new striker at all.
The likes of Lucas Joao, Connor Wickham and Marc McNulty also find themselves without a club.