Sonny Aljofree signs: How Doncaster Rovers’ perfect summer transfer window would look | OneFootball

Doncaster Rovers have got their business done early as they ready for their return to Sky Bet League One.

Doncaster Rovers have got their business done early as they get ready for their return to Sky Bet League One.

Grant McCann has already added five players to his title-winning squad, with eyes now set on further additions before the first ball is kicked in the 2025/26 season.

Dundee United winger Glenn Middleton followed former Leeds United youngster Robbie Gotts into the club, while Huddersfield Town centre-back Matty Pearson and ex-Stevenage loanee Brandon Hanlan then signed permanently for Rovers.

Thimothee Lu-Tutala signing is the perfect start

The fifth signing was Thimothee Lu-Tutala. The 22-year-old Frenchman played just once last season, keeping a clean sheet as an emergency loanee at Crawley Town, and has now joined on loan from Hull City.

Before that, he impressed at Doncaster in a loan spell for the second-half of the 2023/24 campaign. He recorded eight clean sheets in 20 appearances, as Rovers gatecrashed the play-offs.

A penalty shootout defeat to Crewe Alexandra brought an end to an incredible surge towards promotion, but McCann’s side went one better with a top-placed finish 12 months on.

They say to never fall in love with a loan player, but Lo-Tutala became a fan-favourite very quickly. And he has now returned to Doncaster, this time on a season-long loan to plug the gap left by Chelsea youngster Teddy Sharman-Lowe.

That said, there are two signings that would give Rovers a perfect summer transfer window.

Sign: Reece Welch

Next on the summer shopping list for Doncaster is a centre-back. Pearson slots neatly into Tom Anderson’s spot, with the vacancies left by departed Joseph Olowu and retired Richard Wood yet to be filled.

The Doncaster Free Press has reported that the next acquisition McCann is looking to sign is a central defender, with it understood that he would come as a permanent move from a Premier League side.

One player that fits that bill is Everton youngster Reece Welch. The towering 21-year-old, who is capped at youth level for England, played 17 League Two games at Forest Green Rovers during a loan stint and only has one-year left on his current deal.

His profile would be a good one for Doncaster, with a permanent transfer surely a potential one given his contract expires in 2026.

Re-sign: Mallik Wilks

Mallik Wilks is a player that needs no introduction for Rovers fans. The former Doncaster winger is a free agent after his release from South Yorkshire rivals Sheffield Wednesday, and remains available.

His best work has come for McCann teams, both at the Eco-Power Stadium and at a promotion-winning Hull outfit.

Rovers could do with another attacker too, and Wilks comes in versatile form with experience through the middle or out wide.

The club have been happy to re-sign former players, so a move for Wilks is not out of the question, even if the recruitment of Hanlan and Middleton make the forward line busier than it was when Wilks was let go by the Owls.

Loan recruit: Sonny Aljofree

Doncaster have utilised the loan market well over recent seasons, with ‘keeper Sharman-Lowe, West Ham United’s Patrick Kelly, and Leeds prospect Charlie Crew all successful loanees in the promotion-sealing campaign.

Rovers need defensive reinforcements, with academy graduates and makeshift centre-back Owen Bailey the only other options alongside Jay McGrath and new recruit Pearson.

A loan acquisition is an easy way to add a fourth competitive centre-back to the ranks, with the aforementioned permanent addition sought.

Manchester United 20-year-old Sonny Aljofree would be a good signing, coming off the back of a good spell at Accrington Stanley.