QPR told it will be ‘hard to keep’ Jimmy Dunne this summer after failed transfer approach in January

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EFL Analysis can exclusively reveal that Jimmy Dunne will attract interest from elsewhere this summer, and that QPR may find it very difficult to retain the defender beyond this season.

QPR’s season has been an odd one, with the Londoners initially looking like relegation fodder, before Marti Cifuentes turned things around.

The R’s are now sitting relatively comfortable in 15th place in the Championship table with 45 points from 38 games, seven points clear of the bottom three.

While most fans will be looking ahead to next season already and how Cifuentes can build on this, the club may well be rocked by a major departure in the summer as we share inside information on the future of Jimmy Dunne.

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Sheffield United could come back for Jimmy Dunne this summer

In an EFL Analysis exclusive, we spoke to TBR Football’s Chief Football Correspondent and transfer expert Graeme Bailey about Dunne and how likely it is that his performances this season will have put him in the shop window, and it turns out he very nearly left in January.

Bailey said: “I am told he was very close to joining Sheffield United in the January transfer window. Talks did take place but things just did not work out.

“Don’t be surprised if the Blades come back, but I do know a number of their Championship rivals like him a lot. I really think QPR will find it hard to keep him. He has done really well at right-back.”

A lot will likely depend on whether Chris Wilder’s side get promoted when it comes to their interest in the Irishman, but it sounds like there will be plenty of other suitors will be queuing up to sign Dunne in the off-season.

Dunne’s contract with QPR expires at the end of this season.

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Jimmy Dunne is one of the best in the league, but he’s still underrated

It’s no real surprise that Dunne is a wanted man. He’s quietly gone about his business this season and performed exceptionally well in a struggling team, and has done it all while playing a different role to his preferred position.

Dunne is one of the highest-rated players in the Championship this season, and when you look at the company he is keeping at the top of those rankings — only Borja Sainz and Junior Firpo have a better rating — it’s testament to just how well the defender has played this year.

We regard Dunne as one of the best players in the Championship, period, and it would be fascinating to see what he could do in a stronger, more consistent team.

QPR fans will be praying he stays put, but if Dunne gets the chance to jump into the Premier League with Sheffield United, or challenge for promotion with a top second tier side, he would surely leap at that opportunity.