Report: Exeter join Crawley in race to land Portsmouth keeper Alex Bass

According to The Sun’s Alan Nixon, the Grecians are keen on a loan deal for the 24-year-old, who looks set to be playing his football away from Fratton Park next season.

The League One new-boys are in need of a goalkeeper after Cameron Dawson returned to parent club Sheffield Wednesday after a highly-productive loan spell at St James Park last season.

And Bass has reportedly been identified as someone of interest, given his situation at PO4.

Speaking after the Blues’ pre-season friendly win at Gillingham on Saturday – a game which Bass missed, with new signing Josh Griffiths starting – Danny Cowley admitted he had now received multiple offers for the stopper as he moves closer to an exit.

Last week The News revealed League Two Crawley had tabled a bid to take the Pompey academy graduate to the Broadfield Stadium on permanent deal.

Now a decision is likely within the coming days, with Cowley to decide whether to cash in on the player, who has a year remaining on his existing Fratton Park deal, or allow him to go out on loan again.

According to Devon Live, Exeter – who have yet to sign anyone this summer – had two loan deals ready to be completed, only for the parent clubs involved to back away at the last minute.

It’s been reported that one of those was a goalkeeper.

Grecian boss Matt Taylor said: ‘All we can do is put offers in front of players and parent clubs for loans.

‘If they get turned down, it shows everyone where we are in the reckoning of the pyramid. We can’t force it through and for them to sign, we can’t magic up more money, so that is where we are.

‘We thought we had two in at the start of the week. That was the biggest kick in the gonads as they were on the way down and then the parent club pulls out.

‘We hope we will be close again next week, but I have said all along, I want to add quality to the group.

‘We have to be patient, it has to be right. I could sign 10 players right now but won’t add to what we have got and that won’t benefit anyone.’

When, as expected, Bass leaves, Pompey are expected to bring in a new No2 to act as cover for West Brom loanee Griffiths.