2 Premier League targets that should be on Stockport County’s radar this week | OneFootball

The Hatters could look to last-minute loan deals after a spate of unfortunate injuries

Key Takeaways

Stockport County have made an inspired start to the season despite an unfortunate string of injuries and may look to the loan market before the end of the month to address some gaps in the squad.

Premier League clubs will often look to send their promising young talents out to lower league clubs to gain experience in senior football at this time of year.

Teams like the Hatters can use this to their advantage, getting players that may otherwise not be available to them for a short period of time, a method that has had a great impact in recent times with the likes of Louie Barry from Aston Villa.

Here, Football League World looks at two Premier League youngsters that Dave Challinor's side could have a look at before the window shuts...

Jayden Danns

Jayden Danns had an extremely successful 2023/24 season, playing across the Reds' U18, U21 and senior sides throughout the campaign.

That culminated in one of the proudest moments of his budding career so far, netting two goals in Liverpool's 3-0 victory over Southampton in the fifth round of the FA Cup when he was introduced as a substitute by former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp.

Despite that, he faces another season bouncing between the academy and the periphery of the senior team. While that is no bad spot for an 18-year-old to be, the two parties may feel he's ready for more first-team football than Liverpool can offer him, and a switch to somewhere like Edgeley Park could be ideal.

County had already recruited a temporary striker in the form of Michael Mellon, but a pre-season injury with an as-yet-unknown lay-off period may leave them looking for reinforcements in this area, and they could do worse than a player like Danns.

Plymouth Argyle were linked earlier in the summer but Stockport would lose nothing by enquiring themselves.

Calum Scanlon

Calum Scanlon, a year Danns' senior, finds himself in a very similar scenario to the striker, in the same academy system.

Unfortunately for County - due to an injury to Crystal Palace loanee Tayo Adaramola - they also find themselves in a similar scenario to Mellon's situation in Scanlon's position, left-back, so both Danns and Scanlon would appear to fit into the Hatters squad in very similar ways.

Scanlon has had slightly less first-team exposure than Danns but that is perhaps to be expected, with it being much easier to throw a young striker into the mix than it is to put the responsibility of being a defender on a youth player coming into the senior side.

That being said, Scanlon has turned out for the Merseysiders in the Europa League and is an U19 international with England.

With Adaramola joining fellow young left-back Ryan Rydel in the treatment room, who has been sidelined for over a year now, County clearly recognise the need for cover in this area.

Similarly to Danns, Scanlon is likely to be limited to cameos with the Reds' senior side this season and may not have enough first-team experience to pique the interest of Championship clubs, but he looks ready to provide cover to a team like County, with a much greater chance of getting vital minutes under his belt.