Blackburn Rovers and Middlesbrough are reported to be among the numerous Championship clubs vying for Everton striker Ellis Simms’s signature this summer.

As previously reported, the 22-year-old is a player the Blues are keen to bring to Portman Road as Kieran McKenna looks to strengthen his strike force ahead of Town’s return to the Championship.

But a number of other Championship clubs are also understood to be interested with Simms’s former loan club Sunderland, Bristol City and Stoke City previously having been linked.

According to the Liverpool Echo, the Black Cats, managed by former Town skipper Tony Mowbray, have held talks regarding the 6ft 3in tall frontman but fear being out-gunned by other clubs in the running, while Blackburn are among the other contenders.

Elsewhere, TeamTalk reports that Middlesbrough, whose boss is McKenna’s friend and former Manchester United colleague Michael Carrick, are another of the interested parties.

Simms, who has a year left on his deal at Goodison Park, joined Everton at 16 having spent time with Blackburn and Manchester City as a schoolboy.

The striker was loaned to Blackpool in January 2021, then a year later moved to Hearts in Scotland for the second half of the following season.

The Oldham-born striker signed for Sunderland on loan last season and made 14 starts and three sub appearances, scoring seven times, before being recalled at the turn of the year.

For his parent club, Simms has made three starts and nine sub appearances - all in the Premier League - scoring once, in March’s 2-2 draw at Chelsea.

A new number nine - or perhaps two - is likely to be well up McKenna’s summer wishlist with loanee George Hirst having returned to his parent club Leicester at the end of the season.

Elsewhere, former Town academy striker Charlie Brown, 23, has joined Morecambe on a one-year deal having left Cheltenham at the end of last season.

Brown left the Blues’ youth set-up aged 16 as he was about to start his scholarship at Playford Road to join Chelsea.

Photo: Action Images

Linkboy13 added 10:00 - Jun 25 Not only is it going to be much harder playing wise in the championship it's also more difficult purchasing players as we are competing with clubs with bigger budgets.
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Nomore4 added 10:17 - Jun 25 Bigger budgets Linkboy? A majority of clubs in the Championship are in massive debt. We showed last season we can compete with anything in the Championship on field….and that was with our L1 squad.
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Nomore4 added 10:55 - Jun 25 If truth be known……and it's all available online. How many Championship clubs will survive the season without points deductions? Under FFP near on £40m losses allowed, built over 3 years. A number of Championship clubs was close to breaking the FFP rule in the last accounting year alone. All clubs saddled with debts of £100m plus. Big clubs on the edge of ruin. West Brom obtained a £20m loan December 2022, in order to keep operating into the 23/24 season as a safety net if promotion wasn't achieved. That plan didn't work out…..and the loan has a 14% interest rate. All the above, is who we compete with…..on and off field.

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Orraman added 11:03 - Jun 25 On the Charlie Brown footnote…….His head and advisor's heads were obviously turned when big time Chelsea came calling. Now see where he is - moving from Cheltenham to Morecambe! No guarantee he would have made a success of it here but I do think his chances would have better. Perhaps a lesson for other youngsters who think the grass is greener elsewhere.
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Nomore4 added 11:10 - Jun 25 Yes Orraman….then there is the Gibbs who's now worth millions. Obviously Charlie Brown never lived upto expectations. On another note; Also nice to see Norwich City snap up all the best of the best freebies this window…….Funds are tight.
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Nomore4 added 11:36 - Jun 25 As a season ticket holder I'm just looking for 3 or 4 big signings this window. Simms ticks the boxes as the 1st one.
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madmouse1959 added 15:04 - Jun 25 Could Simms be the battering ram up front ? Could be the difference between a top 6 place and mid table) (Hirst would be a great signing for Ipswich,he looked happy here and was getting better once he settled in)
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Nigeglos added 15:27 - Jun 25 Bit of a odd comment troyparrot. He was in the championship for years, not sure he has to prove anything apart from going to the next level. He is in many ways following what he did at Bristol city, pitch, ground etc. By the time he left Ashton Gate was almost unrecognisable. Their training facilities are superb. As for the trading, I wonder without Webster what the results would have been. He is very much a marmite figure though. Not quite sure why he attracted the stick for their failure to ever threaten. Don't think they ever made the play offs while he was there.

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