Former St Johnstone and Dundee forward Dara Costelloe is emerging as one of the EFL’s most wanted men this summer.
The 22-year-old spent the first half of the 2023/24 season on loan at McDiarmid Park before making a January switch across Tayside to Dens Park.
Neither spell proved to be a success.
The Irishman played just 12 times for Saints, scoring once.
He appeared in five more games under Tony Docherty.
Costelloe was predominantly used as a winger or wing-back in Scotland but last season he was transformed into a centre-forward, where he used his raw pace and power to good effect at Accrington Stanley and then Northampton Town.
He scored 11 goals across those loans – in Leagues Two and One.
Now, three clubs are reported to be chasing a permanent deal to sign Costelloe from Burnley.
Leyton Orient, MK Dons and Wigan Athletic have all been name-checked as suitors, with his parent club set to receive a transfer fee.
Learning from loans
Costelloe has had five loans and, speaking at the end of last season, said that all of them, Saints and Dundee included, have played an important part in his career development.
He said: “I’ve definitely learned that there’s no such thing as a bad loan.
“I’ve learned something from all of them – coming from a Premier league club in Burnley to other clubs where it’s about grinding it out a different levels.
“Being around experienced pros, different managers and different styles of play has been huge.”
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