How Barnsley FC can land Reyes Cleary 2.0 if Derby County, Bristol City seal transfer raid | OneFootball

Boreham Wood's Abdul Abdulmalik has already caught the eye of several League One sides

Barnsley FC should be thinking one step ahead if Derby County or Bristol City do go through with a move for Reyes Cleary this summer.

This comes after FLW exclusively revealed on Friday that both the Rams and the Robins are now poised to enter the race for the 22-year-old's signature.

Another Championship side, Sheffield United, were, of course, heavily linked with Cleary in the winter window, and their manager, Chris Wilder, even admitted at the end of January that the 22-year-old was someone Blades had a look at internally.

Pair this with Alan Nixon's Patreon report from April, which claimed United scouts watched Cleary in action ahead of a potential summer bid, then you can imagine there'll be a host of Championship sides alongside Derby, Bristol City and Blades ready to submit an offer at some point over the coming months.

Obviously, Reyes would be a huge miss for the Tykes if he were to depart, having scored seven goals and provided 15 assists across 50 games this past season, but there is a potential like-for-like replacement out there..

How Barnsley FC can land Reyes Cleary 2.0

The answer to a Reyes Cleary replacement is Boreham Wood’s Abdul Abdulmalik, a similarly direct attacker who has lit up the National League in a way that will feel familiar to anyone who watched Cleary do the same.

Albeit Abdulmalik is one year older than Cleary, at 23, his record this past season was incredible. In comparison to Cleary's six goals and three assists in 20 games at Hartlepool, Abdulmalik managed 18 goals and ten assists for the Wood in 56 matches.

Like Cleary, Abdulmalik predominantly plays on the left, and his game is seemingly built on one-v-one ability and sharp footwork. That makes him feel like a natural successor if Barnsley lose one of their most exciting wide options to a Championship club soon.

The above video was from the National League play-off final last Sunday, where although his side lost on penalties to Rochdale, the former Millwall academy prospect shone at Wembley with a goal and an assist.

According to the Peterborough Telegraph, Barnsley's fellow League One rivals Peterborough United were reportedly among a list of clubs watching Abdulmalik during that game.

The other clubs named in the report also credited with interest in the Non-League star were Leicester City, Plymouth Argyle and Doncaster Rovers.

Potential £5m Reyes Cleary fee could allow easy Barnsley FC, Abdul Abdulmalik pursuit

When yet another Championship club, Blackburn Rovers, had their own bid rejected for Cleary back in January, it was also reported by Nixon that Barnsley valued their star man at around £5m.

You’d like to think that kind of money would easily fund a move for Abdulmalik - and more - which is why the Tykes should be in this Boreham Wood transfer race.

Abdulmalik extended his contract at the Non-League club last April, and that is supposed to keep him at Meadow Park until the end of 26/27, whilst there's also an option for a further year. Given the number of teams apparently watching him, you'd expect Abdulmalik to be on his way out soon though.

It's worth noting that Boreham Wood's record departure was Sorba Thomas to Huddersfield Town back in 2021. Now at Stoke City, Thomas was named in the 25/26 Championship Team of the Season, so the track record of developing quality players is certainly there.

Although the actual fee for Thomas was reported as undisclosed, Boreham Wood described it as a "club-record." Now though, there's every chance Abdulmalik could go for more.