Hull City manager Sergej Jakirovic says he wants veteran central defender John Egan to remain with the Tigers for the rest of the season, TWTD having revealed on Friday that the Blues had showed interest in the 33-year-old during this window.
It was understood Town’s interest had cooled from earlier in the window when former Republic of Ireland international Egan was viewed as an experienced defender to come in, in part to allow Elkan Baggott to go out on loan, with boss Kieran McKenna indicating that as it stood on Friday he anticipated the Indonesia international staying with the Blues for the rest of the campaign.
However, according to reports this morning, the Blues remain interested ahead of Monday’s 7pm deadline in Egan with West Ham United also linked.
Quizzed on the situation, Hull manager Jakirovic told HullLive: "If you ask me, I would like John to stay with us. If somebody asks at the beginning of the season, John Egan, you will play a big number of games, I think he will not believe in that, but he's a very important member of this squad.
"John’s truly a leader with a lot of experience and there is no surprise for me that he has some offers, so we will see, but if a player decides to go, you must respect that. I cannot stop anybody if he chooses to go, but I will fight to make sure he stays with us.”
Cork-born Egan started his English career at Sunderland during which time he had spells on loan at Crystal Palace, Sheffield United, Bradford City and Southend.
Having failed to break into the Black Cats first team, Egan moved on to Gillingham on a permanent basis before spells at Brentford, back with the Blades on a permanent basis and Burnley before joining the Tigers last January.
Egan is contracted to Hull, who moved above the Blues into third in the Championship yesterday, until the summer of 2027 after triggering an extension based on appearances before Christmas.