Bradford City told to sign ex-Man United man & £16.5m star | OneFootball

Bradford City have been urged to sign both Sam Clucas and Brandon Williams before the close of the summer transfer window.

Bradford City have started the season strongly and will seek to sustain a promotion challenge – and they have now been urged to reinforce their squad with the signings of Sam Clucas and Brandon Williams.

Having gained automatic promotion from League Two in the 2024-25 season, Graham Alexander’s Bradford surprised many by finishing fourth and reaching the League One play-offs last season.

Beaten by eventual play-off winners Bolton Wanderers by two goals to nil on aggregate, Bradford returned to pre-season and into League One clearly with the bit between their teeth.

Rather than just being in the play-offs, there is a feeling that The Bantams may well gain automatic promotion this season, and it has been a brilliant start to that endeavour.

Having beaten Rochdale in the first round of the EFL Cup and then Burnley on penalties in the second round, Bradford have also won two from two in League One against Peterborough United and Sheffield Wednesday – making it four wins from four without conceding at the start of this season across all competitions.

Alexander’s business has again seemed smart and exactly what Bradford required with the additions of Jake Beesley, Adam Phillips, Callum Connolly, Macaulay Gillesphey, Jon McCracken, Henry Cartwright, Reece Welch and Cameron Dawson.

Their business may not yet be done, though, and they have been urged to add both Clucas and Williams to their ranks this summer.

Once a player that moved from Hull City to Swansea City for a fee believed to be in the region of £16.5 million, Sam Clucas is a player suggested to be ideal for strengthening the depth in midfield and at wing-back for Bradford.

Another player with good pedigree, having come through the ranks at Manchester United and ideal for the wing-back position, is Brandon Williams. This all according to FLW’s Bradford Fan Pundit Boris Thomson.

Boris says: “We could definitely do with strengthening in central midfield and wing-back areas, with maybe just one more in each position.

“I saw that Brandon Williams had had a trial at Rotherham. That would be amazing, really.

“An academy graduate at Man United, made it through to the first-team, and he hasn’t really kicked on since then – that would be a great signing.

“We have been linked with (Sam) Clucas as well, and that would be a great signing at wing-back.

“He is maybe a little past his prime, but that would be good to strengthen the wing-back positions.

“I’m not saying I see us needing to replace either option there now, but I just think that security in that position if one of them was to get injured would be great.”

Given their pedigree and where they ended up in their careers at one stage, it is not unreasonable to suggest that both Clucas and Williams would be, at their best, worthwhile additions to Bradford as they seek depth for their first-team squad.

However, both players are on the downslope in their careers and at a stage where their arrivals at Valley Parade would have to be categorised as risks.

After leaving Swansea after just one season in 2018, Clucas had a lengthy spell at Stoke City before moves to Rotherham United, Oldham Athletic and Lincoln City ahead of a reasonable campaign in League Two at Shrewsbury Town.

As for Williams, he played Championship football as recently as last season for eventual play-off winners Hull City, but it was just his 63rd appearance in first-team football at the age of 25.

Williams has recently had an unsuccessful trial at Bradford’s Yorkshire rivals Rotherham United and, therefore, a move to a higher division would seem like a much better one for the player, rather than the club.

Bradford do perhaps need some depth and Alexander is adept at polishing up rough diamonds – but these two players would surely represent a bit of a risk for City to make at this stage.