Barnsley are closing in on the signing of Forest Green Rovers centre-back Liam Kitching.

Kitching, 21, is from Harrogate and came through the Leeds United academy but never made an appearance and moved to Forest Green last year. He has played 53 games for the Gloucestershire club, who are currently second in League Two. But he has not appeared since December 5 with speculation around a January move while manager Mark Cooper has confirmed he is not injured. The deal is understood to be close, with a £600,000 fee reported, but the Chronicle has been told it has yet to be agreed and finalised. Head coach Valerien Ismael said: “Liam Kitching is on our list, we are looking for a defender. We will see what happens in the next few weeks and days.”

Should he move, Kitching would follow in the footsteps of Ethan Pinnock who moved from Forest Green to Oakwell in 2017 and he would re-unite with former Leeds academy team-mates Clarke Oduor and Aapo Halme.