QPR and Sheffield Wednesday find out transfer price for target snapped up by Portsmouth

QPR and Sheffield Wednesday were beaten to the signing of Brisbane Roar striker Thomas Waddingham by Championship rivals Portsmouth this month and more details have emerged over the transfer as the saga drags on.

The News claims that Pompey forked out a fee of £200,000 to sign the 19-year-old, who had been linked with the R's and the Owls. However, the club is yet to confirm the transfer due to paperwork delays.

Portsmouth are awaiting international clearance before unveiling Waddingham, having struck an agreement with the A-League side on January 11. That date was confirmed by Roar boss Ruben Zadkovich at the time.

QPR target’s move to Championship rival delayed

Pompey have played twice since then, losing against Blackburn Rovers before beating Middlesbrough, and have not been able to field their new striker. It looks unlikely that Waddingham will play against Stoke City on Wednesday night but his move could be confirmed ahead of that fixture.

The clearance for the transfer must come from the FA but with the process of issuing an International Transfer Certificate (ITC) limited to seven days once a request has been made, it’s believed Waddingham’s registration could be approved and signed off by tomorrow night.

The teenager has scored four goals in 11 games for Brisbane this season and is viewed as a star for the future by Portsmouth manager John Mousinho. Waddingham will be the club's third signing of the month following loanees Rob Atkinson and Isaac Hayden.

QPR had also been credited with transfer interest in Hayden, before the midfielder moved to Fratton Park. The Newcastle United man spent the back end of last season on loan at Loftus Road and had hinted at his desire to return to West London.

Portsmouth and Brisbane Roar managers hint at transfer

Mousinho had been asked about the club's move for Waddingham this month and said: “It’s the same answer as always - as long as those players are contracted to other clubs there will be no comment on that.

“The most important message to everyone is first of all we’re trying to make the squad better at the back end of it (the window). We want to impact the starting XI and impact the 14 or 15 key players in the squad. If we do anything which is ‘developmental’ it won’t be in the way of other signings. We’re not going to ignore it, we’re not going to ignore players who have a bit of promise for the future for the sake of it. If we do take players we think will develop six months down the line, it’s just not going to be at the cost of getting someone else in - that’s the most accurate way of looking at it.

“Take any position, if we think we need to do something to impact it we’ll do that first and then something developmental later. It’s not one or the other, the priority is definitely here and now.”

Zadkovich was more categorical in his response to the Portsmouth transfer after it had emerged that QPR and Sheffield Wednesday had missed out. Asked if the player had been omitted from a matchday squad due to the imminent deal, he said: “Yeah it is, those rumours are true. Like I’ve been saying for a few weeks, there’s been a lot of interest around Tommy – and rightly so. I’m not going to talk about the inner workings of that deal, but let’s just say it’s a positive for Tommy and his career and it’s a positive for our club financially.

“Look, there’s been a couple of offers to be honest and until it’s concrete, I’m not really going to comment on who that is.”