Rotherham United and the push for Premier League loans

ROTHERHAM United are in discussions with Premier League players they hope to bring to AESSEAL New York Stadium on loan deals for the forthcoming season.

Championship teams can field up to five loanees in matches and so far the Millers, who open their campaign on August 5, have yet to fill any of those slots.

Manager Matt Taylor would like to tie up deals as soon as possible but is being thwarted by the summer itineraries of top-flight clubs who returned from their breaks later than second-tier sides.

“This is week three in pre-season and a lot of Premier League teams are going away in the next couple of weeks,” he said.

“They take a lot of players on those trips and some of the loan targets we're talking to will go away with them. We understand that, we can't do anything about that.”

The boss revealed there is a possibility that Rotherham may reach agreements with some players but then have to wait until their parent clubs' foreign training camps have taken place before seeing them at New York.

In the meantime, the Millers - who this morning lost 1-0 to Elche on the last day of their week-long stay in Spain - are also exploring temporary deals for targets in the second tier. “It might be more realistic to look at loans from our own level,” Taylor said.

In addition, Rotherham are seeking to bring in free agents with a Championship pedigree on permanent contracts.

“Those are conversations we are constantly having,” Taylor said. “I don't think anything is going to drop immediately but we are certainly close to a few.”

Having made six summer signings so far, the club are expecting at least half a dozen more new arrivals before the September 1 close of the transfer window.

The Millers are prepared to let some players leave to free up space in the squad and Taylor is predicting loan exits may not be far away.

He says everyone had a clean slate at the June 26 start of pre-season but that the stage has now been reached where departures will begin to happen.

“We've had phone calls and enquiries about loans,” he said. “It's got to be right for the club. We'll use that market to generate some finance for the budget.

“It's also got to be right for the player, the right pathway, in terms of anyone leaving. We've got to see a good fit.

“We'll have more idea after this week and when we land back in the UK there might be some developments.”

Players who found themselves on the fringes of the squad last season included right-back Peter Kioso, centre-half Jamie McCart, strikers Tom Eaves and left-back Tolaji Bola. McCart and Bola went out on lower-league loans.