Is Nicky Maynard good enough for the Premier League?

Bristol City’s star striker Nicky Maynard has been up for sale by the Robins.

The strikers contract expires in the summer and Bristol City would lose him on a free in if they keep him.

It’s seems like Maynard will be available at a knockdown price in January.

Goals

Nicky Maynard has been relatively prolific in the lower leagues and he has stated in the past that he has a desire to test himself at the highest level. At 25 years of age he is something of a late developer when it comes to moving to a top flight club.

Natural

From what I have seen of Nicky Maynard he is a natural goalscorer. He has a ratio of one goal in every two games, which in any division is a good ratio. He has scored goals in League One and the Championship.

Questions

Maynard has matured superbly in the last few years and became a better all-round player. However there are big question marks about whether he is capable of performing in the Premier League. Lots of strikers have been prolific in the lower leagues and then struggled to reproduce that form in the top flight.

However he will never know if he is good enough until he tries. He deserves a chance in the top flight and it looks like he could get his big move in the January transfer window.

Interest

A number of Premier League clubs have shown an interest in the diminutive striker. The likes of Swansea, Everton and Bolton have all been linked with a move for Maynard and could now make a swoop for the ex-Crewe star.

Swansea and Everton are two of the lowest scoring teams in the Premier League and are in need of a new front man. Maynard may just be the answer to their goalscoring problems. The pair are already competing for the signature of Cliftonville striker Rory Donnelly.

Bargain

When Nicky Maynard joined Bristol City for a fee in the region of £2.25million from Crewe he became the Robins club record signing. However the club is likely to have to accept a much smaller fee for their star player.

I do believe that Nicky Maynard is worth a gamble. His fee won’t be excessive and he is always a danger to opposition defences. I certainly wouldn’t mind Everton taking a gamble on the former-Crewe striker.

Everton are in desperate need of a striker capable of finding the net and offering a bit of a spark and maybe Nicky Maynard could be the answer. Everton aren’t exactly flushed with money at the moment and Maynard could be a good signing.

What is for sure is that Nicky Maynard won’t be at Bristol City much longer. The Robins are just outside the Championship relegation zone after new boss Derek McInnes pulled the club off the bottom of the table.

However Bristol City’s loss will be somebody’s else’s gain and I’m sure wherever Nicky Maynard ends up he will continue to score goals.

Will Nicky Maynard join a Premier League club in January?