Coventry City told to sell Bobby Thomas after £8m Sheffield United bid - he's "worth about half that" | OneFootball

FLW's Coventry City fan pundit has given his verdict on Premier League interest in Bobby Thomas

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Bobby Thomas’ future at Coventry City has become the subject of intense speculation this summer as we approach the end of the transfer window.

It was reported by Pete O’Rourke that both Burnley and Brentford are keeping tabs on the defender ahead of the September 1 deadline.

That came after O'Rourke claimed Coventry's Championship rival Sheffield United lodged a bid worth £8 million last week, with the Blades' desperation to replace Anel Ahmedhodzic becoming evident.

The 24-year-old has started for the Sky Blues in both of their opening two league games this season, scoring in the 5-3 win away at Derby County this past weekend, but how much longer he will be a Sky Blues player for is anyone's guess.

Coventry City told to consider £8 million Bobby Thomas offer

When asked about the Premier League interest in Thomas, FLW’s Coventry fan pundit Chris Deez claimed the £8 million offer is worth double his true value.

He praised the defender, but clarified that he’s sceptical that the 24-year-old has what it takes to play at a high level in the Premier League.

“I really, really like Bobby Thomas, I think you’ll be hard pressed to find any Cov fans who will want to see him go, or any who wouldn’t be disappointed to see him go,” Deez told Football League World.

“He’s been linked with Sheffield United and when I first saw that rumour come through of £8 million, I thought ‘yes, let’s absolutely bite their hands off, we can’t turn down £8 million for him’.

“He’s probably realistically worth about half that.

“He’s a good defender, he’s a leader, he’s strong, he jumps in with the occasional goal here there, and he’s scored some important goals for us as well.

“But I was immediately thinking, does he improve Sheffield United’s defence? So to then see him linked with the likes of Burnley and Brentford, I mean that’s a Burnley team who basically let in no goals last season.

“I don’t see what he offers Burnley at all, Brentford even more so.

“I know that they’re in a bit of a sticky situation, losing players left, right and centre but, again, how does he improve their defence? They’ve become an established pretty much top half team now, they don’t need Bobby Thomas.

“He’s got time on his side, he’s only mid-20s, so he could very well develop into an England international in the future, who knows.

“But I just don’t know, I’ve not seen enough out of him both of these last couple of seasons that screams top quality Premier League player.

“I’m sorry, I love him, I just don’t get that feeling from him.”

Thomas is into his third season with Coventry, and has made a total of 84 league appearances for the Sky Blues since joining from Burnley in 2023.

Coventry City are too light at the back for Bobby Thomas to leave - a replacement would be needed ASAP

If Coventry are going to cash in on Thomas this summer, then they will need to reinvest that money immediately into their backline.

The squad is already quite thin at the back, and could potentially use a new signing even if the centre-back stays at the CBS Arena.

The 5-3 win over Derby County last weekend showed the defensive frailties of the team, so losing Thomas would be a blow.

While an £8 million offer for him in isolation may look like good business, it could prove a bad deal due to the impact it could have on the team in the short-term - unless they have a like-for-like replacement ready to step into his shoes.