Premier League giants Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur are among a host of clubs reportedly “keeping a close eye” on Northern Ireland’s teenage sensation Tom Atcheson, who has been tipped for a bright future by Michael O’Neill.
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Atcheson has been a star performer for Blackburn Rovers in recent weeks after being handed an opportunity by O’Neill – the Northern Ireland chief is currently combining his international role alongside leading the Championship club until the end of this season.
The 19-year-old impressed after coming off the bench in last month’s 2-1 win away at high-flying Millwall and has now started in Rovers’ last two league games, playing his part in consecutive clean sheets.
It has been a dream week for Atcheson, who made his senior Northern Ireland debut in Tuesday’s friendly against Wales before signing a new long-term contract with the Lancashire club less than 24 hours later.
Tying Atcheson down to an extension could prove to be a shrewd piece of business by Rovers with TeamTalk reporting United, Spurs, Newcastle United, Sunderland, Everton, Brentford and Brighton & Hove Albion have all “made checks in recent weeks”.
They also claim that Atcheson is generating interest across Europe with RB Leipzig, Borussia Dortmund, Atalanta and Napoli keen.
O’Neill felt Atcheson took a step up to senior international level in his stride and predicts there’s even more to come from the young defender.
"Tom has been a real find for us in the last couple of years,” he told RoversTV. “We knew about him from a couple of years back when he was in our U19s and U21s, we knew he was a player with a lot of potential.
"I’ve seen that first-hand since I’ve come to the club, particularly in recent weeks when he came out on the pitch against Millwall and played excellently against Middlesbrough.
"I thought he had a really positive camp with the international squad, he looked very comfortable in the group, it’s a young group so he knew a lot of the players anyway.
"He gave a really good account of himself and it’s another step in his development, which I think is going to accelerate in the next 12-18 months.
"He has a great temperament, very calm. I think in a centre-back, temperament is a big, big thing and he seems to have a good balance about him.
“He has a sound family behind him as well and he has ambition and wants to progress in his career.
Throughout his career, O’Neill has worked with a host of talented young defenders, including Nathan Collins at Stoke City.
The Republic of Ireland international departed for Burnley in 2021 and has since represented Wolves and Brentford in the Premier League.
O’Neill feels Atcheson has similar traits to 24-year-old Collins, but doesn’t want to raise expectation levels ahead of time.
"I never like to put too much pressure on young players too early because there’s a lot of things that you’re not always in control of,” he added. "You need good fortune, you need to stay fit and those types of things.
"For Tom, I’ve seen young centre-backs develop and play in the Premier League...I see him having the same traits as the likes of Nathan Collins when I brought him into the team at Stoke, Harry Souttar.
"Different profiles and different types of players, but Tom has those same types of qualities which can bring him to that level.
"It’s like anything, it’s what happens – it’s the hard work, the fortune and getting an opportunity. He has had that under me, maybe not so many previously although he did get some games earlier in the season.
"I don’t want to put too much pressure on him but he’s a real positive thing at the club at this minute in time.”