Leyton Orient are in talks with top-scorer Macauley Bonne over extending his contract with the club.
Bonne, who signed a two-year-deal at Brisbane Road last summer having arrived from Colchester United, proved himself to be one of the most feared strikers in the National League during his first season with the club, scoring 25 goals in all competitions this campaign.
National media reports have suggested that the likes of Shrewsbury Town, Burton Albion and Portsmouth are all interested in the Orient striker, however, Director of Football Martin Ling confirmed that the O’s have yet to receive any bids for the 22-year-old.
Ling said: “There’s been people that have asked about Macauley, but there have been no firm bids for him. I am in conversations with Macauley about extending his contract. So that’s where we are at currently and it’s about convincing him that we are the right place for him to remain beyond the year he’s got left.
Ling also confirmed that the O’s remain in talks with midfielder Ebou Adams over a permanent move to Brisbane Road.
As we have exclusively reported previously, Adams has been in talks with the O’s for some time after enjoying a successful loan spell with the club this season, but has also attracted interest from both Football League and National League outfits.
The 22-year-old impressed during his time with Orient, providing the O’s with some much needed energy in midfield, and made 19 appearances for the club after arriving on loan from Norwich City in January.
However, the Championship side confirmed recently that Adams would be leaving the club this summer on the expiry of his contract and Ling is hopeful a deal can be agreed for the young midfielder.
He said: “We’re still in talks with Ebou. We all want him to come to the football club. I think one of the problems is that I think other football clubs will be interested because he did so well. If our fans see him doing well and we all see him doing well, then other clubs are seeing him do well as well.
“Our biggest hurdle to get over is that we are a Non-League football club. Even though we feel we are a league club sitting in the National League, if you pick a paper up on a Saturday or Sunday, the truth is that we are a Non-League football club. I’m pretty sure there will be league clubs interested in him, so if there are league clubs interested in him, how are we going to convince him that we are the right place for him? It’s an ongoing effort and we’ll see where it will take us.”
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