Mansfield Town boss Nigel Clough has said Matty Longstaff may take “a bit of time” to adjust to League Two football but insists he will have an “important role” to play for the Stags.
Eyebrows were raised by Mansfield Town recruited Longstaff on loan in the January transfer window.
The midfielder is one of Newcastle United’s more promising academy talents and has already made a handful of first-team appearances for the Magpies, but he struggled to make an impact while on loan with Aberdeen in the first half of the 2021/22 campaign.
Longstaff made his debut for the Stags at the weekend, playing all 90 minutes in the 0-0 draw against Bristol Rovers – who also have a Newcastle United talent in their ranks in the form of Elliot Anderson.
Now, following his debut, Longstaff has been backed to succeed with Mansfield Town by manager Clough.
As quoted by the Mansfield Chad, Clough said that while it may take “a bit of time” for the 21-year-old midfielder to adjust, Longstaff will have an “important role” to play over the final weeks and months of the season.
Here’s what he had to say:
“He definitely needs a few games to adjust, but I was very pleased with his physical output over the 90-odd minutes he played.
“You can see he’s technically a very good player. It’s just so different to the Premier League he’s been used to and even the SPL in Scotland. So it will take him a bit of time but it was good to get him on the pitch.
“I think he will play an important role for us in the last 16/17 games.”
The run-in…
Mansfield Town will need everyone at their best as they prepare to fight for promotion to League One.
Clough’s men are on a run of 11 games undefeated in the league and are amongst the fight for an automatic promotion spot, sitting four points away from the top three with games in hand on the majority of teams around them.
Next up is a clash with fellow promotion hopefuls Newport County, so another win would go a long way for Clough and co.
