Championship transfer gossip: Wrexham want reported former Portsmouth target as Watford close in on Bolton keeper

Only two weeks have passed since he regular Championship season finished - but that doesn’t mean clubs are sitting on their laurels and taking it easy.

Rather, transfer plans are already being activated as team bosses and sporting directors plot ways to make their ranks stronger for the latest campaign.

Pompey have already been linked with a number of players - the majority of which have aleady been shot down. And there’s sure to be more on the horizon as we approach the official opening of the transfer window.

Nectar Triantis and Abdoulie Manneh are the latest links to come and go - but what’s happening with the Blues’ rivals?

Here’s the latest top transfer stories from the division as we try to make sense of what’s potentially fact and what’s fiction.

Wales internationals linked with Wrexham moves

Just a day after Championship newcomers Wrexham were linked with a £50,000-per-week contract offer for soon-to-be out-of-contract Fulham midfielder Tom Cairney, two more names have popped up on manager Phil Parkinson’s so-called wanted list.

Keen to come fully prepared for the challenges they’ll face in next season’s Championship, the Welsh outfit have been linked with two current Wales internationals.

According to The Wrexham Insider, The Red Dragons are supposedly keen on Reading midfielder Charlie Savage - a player who has been linked with Pompey in the past.

The same report also claims Rangers winger Tom Lawrence is also on their radar, with the 31-year-old’s contract at Ibrox up at the end of the Scottish Premiership season.

The23-times-capped forward has been with the Gers for the past three seasons, conributing eight goals and six assists from 53 appearance. He also boasts bags of Championship experience, having played for Derby, Ipswich, Cardiff and Blakcburn in the division during his career to date.

Savage - the son of former Leicester and Wales midfielder Robbie - has completed his second season at Reading, having joined the Royals from Manchester United in 2023.

The midfielder has already featured 96 times for the club, which includes 51 apearances and 40 League One starts this season.

As well as Pompey, Cardiff, Swansea, Sheffield Wednesday, Rotherham and Wigan were linked with him in January 2024. Now Wrexham are reportedly keen as they look to add to their ranks following this season’s second-place finish behind champions Birmingham.

Savage has two years remaining on his Reading contract.

Check out our latest episode of Pompey Talk here

Watford close in on second summer arrival

Watford aren’t holding back transfer-wise, following their appointment of Paulo Pezzolano as head coach.

The Hornets have already agreed a deal to bring in Peterborough United midfielder Hector Kyprianou once his Posh contract expires at the end of next month,

Now they’ve turned their sights on another League One regular - Bolton goalkeeper Nathan Baxter, according to reports.

The 26-year-old former Chelsea player is free to leave the Trotters after being told by boss Steven Schumacher that his contract would not be renewed following 62 league appearances during his two-year stay at the Toughsheet Community Stadium.

Baxter started the season as Bolton’s No1 keeper, but soon found himself out of favour under both previous boss Ian Evatt and his successor Schumacher.

Luke Southwood featured in goal for Wanderers for their last two games of the season, with Baxter named on the bnech.

Pompey made the decision to retain third-choice keeper Ben Killip’s services beyond this season, handing the former Barnsley stopper a new deal following his arrival in January.

For your next Pompey read: Former Portsmouth and Luton favourite released by Bristol City - and why this might impact Blues' hope of landing Rob Atkinson