More, More, Morecambe – the 31 latest EFL signings
More, More, Morecambe – the 31 latest EFL signings
NTT20's Summer Transfer Bulletin brings you every signing in the EFL, in detail, in your inbox, every Monday and Thursday.
The Summer Transfer Bulletin is brought to you by Ali Maxwell, George Elek, Huw Davies, Sam Parry, Craig Bradley and Matt Watts. The introduction is by Ali Maxwell.
Morecambe matters…
Look, announcing the signing of FIFTEEN players on a Friday at 6:02 pm is objectively fun, and we want to celebrate that. Morecambe have gone from recruiting zero players in the summer window to signing more than anyone else in League Two, so we’re going to focus on them before detailing the other EFL additions, because the situation matters.
Morecambe only had four senior players under contract previously.
The context of the 15-player spree is this: Morecambe only had four senior players under contract previously. They were placed under a registration embargo in March, having “defaulted in relation to the amount owed to HMRC”. In June, they were also issued with a financial penalty for late payments. The club appealed, leading to an independent Disciplinary Commission to consider the ‘specific circumstances’. After the appeal, the financial penalty was upheld, but the registration embargo was lifted.
Despite this, the club continues to operate under seemingly perilous circumstances under the current ownership. It is unclear why Bond Group has yet to sell the club, because they have consistently failed to update fans despite promises to do so. The Board of Directors — and newly re-appointed Derek Adams — have clearly continued to work hard to keep the club running under tough circumstances.
The origins of these additions reflect that Morecambe are shopping in the local bargain bucket. Most of these players join having left clubs in the north-west. Most of them would not have got another contract in the EFL.
Morecambe are shopping in the local bargain bucket.
The good news? That’s been Morecambe’s recruitment reality for many years. And they, under Derek Adams, have repeatedly built teams that are greater than the sum of their parts. Morecambe take pride in giving opportunities to those that other League Two clubs would reject. They love hearing people like me using phrases like ‘local bargain bucket’ - it fuels powerful motivation and focus. This will be a team that plays with clear roles, hunger and spirit.
Three of the ‘signings’ were Morecambe players last season. Yann Songo’o has played 67% of his 365 career appearances under Derek Adams at four different clubs. Jordan Slew and David Tutonda are also back. Elsewhere, we have:
Harry Burgoyne (GK) - [Shrewsbury - Morecambe] - Free
Burgoyne is a former Wolves youngster who’s been Shrewsbury’s back-up keeper for four years without playing much. He’ll back up Stuart Moore.
Luke Hendrie (RB) - [Bradford - Morecambe] - Free
Ross Millen (RB) - [Raith Rovers - Morecambe] - Free
Hendrie played briefly under Adams at Bradford, and spent last season on loan in the National League with Hartlepool. He’ll compete at RB with Millen, who has plenty of experience in the Scottish second and third tier. They’re filling the boots of last season’s Player of the Season, Joel Senior.
George Ray (CB) - [Barrow - Morecambe] - Free
Jamie Stott (CB) - [FC Halifax Town - Morecambe] - Free
Max Taylor (CB) - [Rochdale - Morecambe] - Free
Ray is a League Two stalwart who has spent the last two seasons as part of an impressive Barrow back-line. Stott is a left-footer who played every game for a good Halifax side in the National League, while former Manchester United academy player Taylor has plenty to prove at senior level after a tough stint with Rochdale.
Adam Lewis (LB) - [Liverpool - Morecambe] - Free
Lewis is an excellent technician for the level with a brilliant cross, but has struggled to stay fit and certainly prefers attacking to defending.
Tom White (CM) - [Barrow - Morecambe] - Free
Paul Lewis (CM) - [Tranmere - Morecambe] - Free
Callum Jones (CM) - [Hull - Morecambe] - Loan
White is a dogged defensive midfielder who loves a tackle and apparently has a lovely bromance with George Ray. Lewis had a poor spell at Tranmere but is a midfielder whose most notable trait is a penchant for getting into the box and offering 4-6 goals a season. A touch of the Aaron Wildigs, someone Adams was very fond of in a previous Shrimps era. Jones is a 23-year-old former Morecambe loanee, who played 1,135 minutes for Forest Green last season, and showed an eye for a pass, but needs a full season of senior football to jumpstart his career.
Ben Tollitt (RW) - [Oldham - Morecambe] - Free
A winger that finished last season at Chester in the National League North, on loan from Oldham. On his day, a tricky player with good technique. Some injury issues. 0.49 goals + assists per 90 in 6,217 National League minutes is a decent record.
Hallam Hope (ST) - [Oldham - Morecambe] - Free
A 30-year-old striker who scored his first League Two goal on loan at Northampton in January 2014 when a highly-rated Everton youngster. Yes, he has a paltry goalscoring record in recent years at a lower level but Hope does possess the requisite amount of graft to slot into a Derek Adams.
I genuinely like the business…
So, Morecambe can now name a matchday squad, and have bodies in all areas of the pitch. We can expect the loan market to be leaned on for the remaining additions. While these names won’t be the envy of other League Two clubs, I genuinely like the business because it fits perfectly with the manager Derek Adams.
Last season, when Adams left for Ross County, Morecambe were sitting just outside the play-offs with games in hand, having had to cobble together a squad in similar circumstances. The previous season Morecambe where in League Two, they won promotion, with Adams in charge of a group of players built from the local bargain bucket. Others may look at the squad ‘on paper’ and decide it doesn’t stack up with others at the level. Morecambe fans, and Derek Adams, will have no such issues. They’ve seen and heard it all before.
Now please can the club be sold into safe hands, to allow them to leave behind wage issues, EFL sanctions and existential uncertainty?
Championship
Chris Willock (RW/LW/AM) - [QPR - Cardiff] - Free
From one capital to another, Chris Willock becomes Cardiff City's first summer signing. Last season, Erol's Bluebirds were too reliant on set pieces and Willock's arrival should increase their threat from open play. It's been a couple of years since the 26-year-old hit the heights that we all know he's capable of but, when he's on song, he's one of the best attacking players at the level. A fresh start could be exactly what Willock needs.
Calum Chambers (CB/RB/DM) - [Aston Villa - Cardiff] - Free
With caps for England and over a decade in the top flight, Chambers has huge pedigree. From a Cardiff perspective, it's a curious use of wage commitments – he'll immediately be one of the club's top earners, playing in a position where Dimitrios Goutas and Mark McGuinness formed a pretty good partnership last season – but Erol Bulut spoke of Chambers improving the team's defensive shape, so there's a tactical reason for the ambitious signing. Perhaps that tallies: capable of playing at right back, centre back and as a holding midfielder, Chambers is incredibly versatile, but 22 league starts in the last four seasons (and just three in the last two) mean that Bluebirds fans should probably temper their expectations.
Joe Rothwell (CM) - [Bournemouth - Leeds] - Loan
Having played a bit-part role in Southampton's promotion to the Premier League, Joe Rothwell heads out on loan again, this time to the defeated Play-Off Finalists. Rothwell is a known quantity at Championship level. He's very tidy in possession, an excellent ball carrier, and capable of the spectacular (see his volley against Huddersfield last season). The 29-year-old is also a different profile of midfielder to the likes of Ilia Gruev and Glen Kamara, so brings a point of difference.
Reuell Walters (RB/CB) - [Arsenal - Luton] - Free
A career that's so far been restricted to youth football and the EFL Trophy, Walters is a right-footed centre-back who can also operate at full-back, which makes him — on paper at least — fit the profile of an RCB in a back three. He possesses lots of pace and should get a good go at making a first XI spot his own with Gabriel Osho moving on to Auxerre.
Lukas Jensen (GK) - [Lincoln - Millwall] - Undisclosed
After a standout season in League One, Lukas Jensen makes the step up to the Championship. The 25-year-old Dane kept 19 clean sheets in 45 league games for Lincoln, in addition to leading the way in the third tier for metrics such as goals prevented.
Nathaniel Chalobah (CM) - [West Brom - Sheffield Wednesday] - Free
It's over 10 years since Nathaniel Chalobah burst onto the Championship scene while on loan at Watford. Has he lived up to his potential? Possibly not, but the 29-year-old still has plenty to offer at this level. A classy operator at the base of the midfield, Chalobah has played over 1000 league minutes just once in the last nine seasons. If he can get more game time, then who knows - he might be able to roll back the years.
Gonçalo Franco (CM) - [Moreirense - Swansea] - Undisclosed
Gonçalo Franco is the footballing equivalent of a Jack Russell, a midfield terrier who gets bored easily and wants to entertain. He will mix the ridiculous with the sublime. Franco demands the ball from his back four and is capable of zippy one-touch football. His shot location map from last season looks like this:
What it doesn't show you is the destination of each shot: half way line lobs that sail anywhere but goalward, volleys direct from corners that go out for throw-ins. Expect balls sailing out of the stadium, row Z getting peppered and probably the goal of the season award.
League One
Scott Arfield (RM/CM) - [Charlotte - Bolton] - Free
From Charlotte to Bolton, Scottish midfielder Scott Arfield returns to the north west. The engine may not be what it once was, but the former Burnley and Rangers man featured regularly in the MLS last season. Aside from his technical qualities, Arfield's experience and his burning desire to succeed will no doubt be invaluable to Ian Evatt's promotion chasers.
Jamie Lindsay (CM) - [Rotherham - Bristol Rovers] - Free
Interesting move insofar as Lindsay played under Matt Taylor at Rotherham and Taylor didn't seem to rate him, and often he didn’t even make the bench. But those were different circumstances. Lindsay has two promotions on his CV at the level, he does all the nasty work well; if there’s a ball to be won, he'll be snapping at it.
Jack Hazlehurst (AM) - [Chorley - Burton] - Undisclosed
An attacking midfielder who scored nine National League North goals for Chorley last season, in what was the highest level of the game Hazlehurst has played. He now steps up another three divisions and into League One. Burton have handed the 24-year-old a three-year contract, so despite coming to the professional game late, he does have time on his side.
Taylor Richards (CM) - [QPR - Cambridge] - Loan
It's often forgotten that footballers are people too. Taylor Richards is a talented player who's had some difficult issues to deal with off the pitch. Still only 23 and back in League One where he excelled with Doncaster, this could be the perfect opportunity for this silky, sharp-shooting leftie to remind everyone what he's capable of.
Tom Eaves (ST) - [Rotherham - Northampton] - Free
Standing at 6ft 5in, Tom Eaves' main attributes aren't exactly a mystery to most EFL fans. He'll win plenty of aerial duels and will be an incredibly useful foil for the likes of Callum Morton and Sam Hoskins. The 32-year-old scored six goals for Rotherham last season in the Millers' disastrous Championship campaign. In reality, Eaves hasn't exactly been prolific since he was playing for Gillingham pre-Covid times, but he would quite rightly point to a lack of starts for both Hull and Rotherham. Plus, he has spent four of the last five seasons playing in the second tier. With Louis Appere no longer on Cobblers' books, Eaves feels like an excellent replacement.
Tommi O'Reilly (AM) - [Aston Villa - Shrewsbury] - Loan
Tommi O'Reilly is highly regarded at Aston Villa. The young attacking midfielder has found himself on the bench for the first team on a handful of occasions and saw eleven minutes of Conference League action before spending the back end of last season at Villa's sister club in Spain - Real Union - where he didn't get much game time. The reality is he could've done with a League One last this time last year and is now catching up somewhat. There's a question mark about how suitable Shrewsbury is as a destination for him - he likes the ball and plays well on the half-turn and it's not difficult to imagine him and Harrison Biggins wanting the same spaces.
League Two
Joe Pigott (ST) - [Leyton Orient - AFC Wimbledon] - Loan
Pigott hasn't been able to replicate his previous AFC Wimbledon form elsewhere and after spells with Ipswich, Portsmouth and Leyton Orient, he returns to the team for whom he scored 20 league goals in 2020/21. It’s not hard to imagine him looking too good for the level if he finds his rhythm.
Theo Vassell (CB) - [Salford - Barrow] - Free
A tall, athletic centre-half that’s tried and tested at League Two level. He excelled in 22/23 but, just like Salford, he couldn't hit the same heights in 23/24. That being said, at the age of 27, the former Stoke man should be coming into his prime.
Taylor Foran (CB) - [Arsenal - Bromley] - Free
An Arsenal academy prospect looking to make a mark on the professional game, 20-year-old Foran made eight starts for Hartlepool in their relegation campaign of 2022/23. That should give him some idea of the battle ahead. The centre-back previously described himself as "extremely vocal". Moving south of the river, this is his opportunity to make his voice count as Bromley hit the EFL road for the first time.
Callum Hendry (AM/ST) - [Salford - MK Dons] - Undisclosed
With Max Dean heading to Belgium, Mike Williamson has bolstered his forward line by bringing in Callum Hendry. The 26-year-old scored 21 league goals across two seasons at Salford. A powerful, aggressive front man who is technically sound and takes a lot of shots from all over. On his day, Hendry is very good at this level. Consistency is key.
Kellan Gordon (RB/RWB) - [Crawley - Notts County] - Free
The latest member of Crawley's promotion-winning side to move on, Kellan Gordon returns to League Two with Notts County. The pacy RB/RWB knows the level very well and he's a more well-rounded option than the likes of Lewis Macari or Aaron Nemane.
Tom Edwards (RB) - [Stoke - Salford] - Free
It wasn't so long ago that Tom Edwards was lining up alongside the likes of Xherdan Shaqiri and Eric Choupo-Moting. Now 25, the tough-tackling right-back has joined Salford on a two-year deal. Having struggled with Huddersfield in the Championship last season, a step down felt inevitable but he could be one of the standout full backs in League Two next season.