Top 10 Recent Near Miss Rotherham United Signings

Tom Adeyemi: The midfielder opted to join Ipswich Town in the Championship over staying with the Millers in League One. He made just five appearances for Ipswich before being released in 2019.

Jason Cummings: Alan Stubbs was a big fan of the Hibernian forward who he used to manage, but a move never came to fruition. He eventually signed for Nottm Forest in 2017 (He now plays for League One side Shrewsbury Town).

Stevie May had heavy interest in him from both Rotherham United and Sheffield Wednesday in the summer of 2014. The Millers under Steve Evans had just returned to the Championship and were looking to bolster their attacking armoury. May had scored 27 goals in 49 appearances for St Johnstone in 2013/14. Rotherham did look the favourites to sign him, until their arch rivals swooped in to get him. The forward only scored seven times for Wednesday from 42 outings, and he has since returned to Scotland for his second spell with St Johnstone.

Another player Evans tried to sign that summer was Massimo Luongo. The Aussie midfielder joined Swindon from Tottenham for around £400,000 in August 2013. He thoroughly impressed for the League One side in his first year, which led to Rotherham offering roughly £600,000 for his services. Swindon turned down the bid and he did remain with the third tier side for another season. Luongo, along with Ben Gladwin, joined QPR ahead of the 2015/16 campaign. The Australian international moved to Sheff Wed in 2019 and he has played six times for them so far this season.

Evans also targeted Macleod in 2014, a player he once described as "one of the top young players in Scotland". The 20-year-old had been gaining a lot of admirers for his performances with Rangers, when the side were playing in the Scottish Championship. He was heavily linked with the Millers that summer, before he ultimately remained with the Gers. He instead waited until January to move to England, as he signed for Brentford in a deal worth over £1m. Macleod got a goal and assist for the Bees against Rotherham in their 5-1 opening day victory in 2018/19. Macleod joined Plymouth Argyle on a free transfer in August this year after he was released by Wigan Athletic.

Moore joined the Millers in 2017 on loan from Ipswich Town. He had very little football league experience, with him playing for Yeovil Town between 2013 and 2015, before he joined Ipswich from Forest Green Rovers in 2016. He proved to be a fantastic signing for Rotherham, scoring 13 goals in 25 appearances during his loan spell. His time at the club came to an end as Mick McCarthy recalled Moore with Ipswich looking to sell him in January. Rotherham were among a number of Championship and League One sides to make an offer for him, but he chose to join Barnsley. He is now a regular for Wales' national team, and he joined Cardiff City from Wigan this summer.

Ward joined Rotherham on loan for the 2015/16 season from Tottenham Hotspur. It proved to be a really fruitful spell for the youngster, as he won the club's Young Player of the Year Award as the Millers dramatically avoided relegation under Neil Warnock. Tottenham were willing to sell him permanently in the summer of 2016. Even though Rotherham were keen, he signed for Championship rivals Ipswich for around £600,000. Injury woes led to him being released by them in 2019. The door was open to return to Rotherham, with Paul Warne eager to bring him back. But Ward opted to sign for League One side Blackpool in December 2019.

Taylor had a superb season in 2012/13 in the Scottish First Division with Falkirk. He scored 24 league goals from 34 outings, which led to Evans showing interest in him at Rotherham. The Millers had a bid accepted for the forward, but talks fell through as Taylor rejected contract terms. He instead signed for Sheffield United later that window. That move did not go to plan, as he ended up moving to AFC Wimbledon in 2015. After an impressive few years there, which included a hat-trick performance against the Millers, he signed for Charlton. He scored 36 goals in 67 outings for them before he joined Nottm Forest this summer.

The attacker came through the ranks at West Ham United. After a couple of loan spells away, he joined Colchester United permanently in 2014. He really hit the ground running in League One, scoring 20 league goals in two years at the U's. Seeing how well he performed at that level, Rotherham registered their interest in him. Yet the midfielder decided to join Championship side Barnsley ahead of the 2016/17 campaign for around £500,000. He left them in 2018 to join Luton Town and he started for the Hatters as they beat Rotherham 1-0 at the New York Stadium on Wednesday night.

The striker came through the ranks at Scunthorpe United, but he first made his name with Conference South side Ebbsfleet Town. He scored 30 times from 45 outings in 2015/16, which led to his move to Stevenage. He carried on this form in League Two, netting 20 times from 38 league outings. This made him one of the most sought after forwards in the football league and Rotherham United were keen to sign him. They were priced out of a move though, and after one more season at Stevenage, he joined Peterborough United in 2018. A year later. he signed for Coventry City, and he has four Championship goals in nine games so far this season.

Dicko spent just a month on loan with Rotherham, but he quickly became a huge cult favourite. He scored six goals in six games before being recalled by Championship side Wigan. The Millers tried desperately to get him permanently, but they could not compete with Wolves. They completed the signing of Dicko in a deal worth around £300,000. He carried on his incredible form with his new team, scoring 13 in 19 outings as they finished the season as League One champions. Dicko faced off against Rotherham in April at Molineux, and he scored a hat-trick as the home side won 6-4 in a thrilling game. The forward joined Hull City in 2019 before he signed for Turkish first division side Gaziantep on a free transfer in October 2020.

Bradshaw made his name for Walsall in League One, as he scored 20 goals in consecutive seasons between 2014 and 2016. This was bound to spark interest from other clubs, and Rotherham bit first to try to sign him. It was reported at the time that the Millers bid around £500,00 for him and were close to getting their man. This was until Barnsley gatecrashed the deal to sign him themselves on a three-year contract for roughly £600,000. Typically, his first goal for Rotherham's Yorkshire rivals did come against the Millers in August 2016. He scored as Barnsley won 4-0 at Oakwell.

Bradshaw has spent the last year and a half with Championship rivals Millwall after he initially joined them on loan in August 2018. He scored eight league goals last season as the Londoners finished 8th in the second tier.