English League One club 'leading the race' for rumoured Hibs target Bailey Wright

Portsmouth are “leading the race” to sign rumoured Hibs target Bailey Wright, according to reports.

Aberdeen and Derby County have also been credited with an interest in the Australian international, who has fallen down the pecking order at the Stadium of Light and is expected to be allowed to leave this month.

Wright previously played under Easter Road boss Lee Johnson at both Sunderland and Bristol City, though he also has a relationship with new Pompy boss John Mousinho from their time together at Preston North End.

Hibs are in the market for a centre-back in the January window with Ryan Porteous expected to leave and Rocky Bushiri potentially out for the rest of the season with a broken leg.

Bailey Wright was linked with a move to Hibs. He's previously played under manager Lee Johnson. Picture: Getty

When asked about it last week, Johnson refused to be drawn on rumours regarding a move for the 30-year-old defender.

“Bails has been my captain twice at two different clubs. He’s a good player. Unfortunately I can’t talk about it because he’s not my player, he’s a Sunderland player,” said the Hibs manager.

"We will take the best possible players for the best possible price. We are looking for players who can hit the ground running. You don’t want to spend six to eight weeks trying to get someone fit. It’s not an easy window to get that.

"If you are taking someone off a subs’ bench who’s been idle for a while, or a young player who’s maybe not experienced the tempo, or an older player who needs a consistent flow of games then that’s a bit delicate for any club in this window. We need instant impact, not six to eight weeks.”

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