Stockport County should launch move to sign Wrexham star - he can help seal Hatters promotion | OneFootball

Stockport County should make a move to sign Ollie Rathbone from Wrexham in the January transfer window.

Stockport County are putting themselves into a position where they are becoming the title favourites in League One and the Hatters should pursue Wrexham midfielder Ollie Rathbone in the January transfer window to help strengthen those credentials.

It has been relentless success under the management of Dave Challinor and now Stockport are, predictably, continuing on their upward trajectory as they now look towards the Championship.

The Hatters currently sit at the top-of-the-table in League One, having missed out on promotion in the play-off semi-finals last season, in what was their first season back in the third-tier.

Stockport started the season shakily and with a few unconvincing performances but they have found their groove of late, with a recent 3-1 defeat of Tranmere Rovers at Prenton Park in the first round of the FA Cup making it six defeats in seven matches across all competitions for County.

They have a strong squad and good financial backing behind them, and adding the finishing touches in January should involve the targeting of Rathbone.

Ollie Rathbone could be a gem for Stockport

Blackburn-born Ollie Rathbone came through the academy at Manchester United before beginning his professional career with Rochdale, going on to make 183 appearances for the Dale across a five-year stint.

He was then signed by Rotherham United for an undisclosed fee in the summer of 2021 and became a key man for the Millers as they gained promotion to the Championship and then kept themselves in the second-tier.

Upon their relegation in 2024, the noisy big spenders of Wrexham then came in for the box-to-box midfielder and he was again a key man for the Red Dragons in another League One promotion-winning campaign, scoring eight goals as their joint top scorer in League One alongside Elliot Lee and Steven Fletcher.

This season has been a frustrating one for the 29-year-old, with an ankle injury seeing him miss the start of the campaign and an influx of new signings in the summer seemingly moving him down the pecking order at the Racecourse Ground, having made the squad on just one occasion in the Championship so far this season.

In an extremely deep part of the pitch for Wrexham, with their other midfield options consisting of Andy Cannon, George Thomason, George Dobson, Ben Sheaf, Lewis O’Brien, Matty James and Harry Ashfield; Rathbone could push for regular game time with a departure in the January window.

If that was to be the case then it could well be that Stockport find themselves a gem that could steer them to promotion as he continues to develop himself into a third-tier promotion specialist.

Ollie Rathbone would raise the floor for Stockport

Stockport have depth all over the pitch and even in midfield, but it is perhaps a position that could be strengthened further in January to really push them over the line in the second-half of the campaign.

The excellent Ollie Norwood remains a fulcrum in the middle of the park, with other options including captain Lewis Bate, but there is perhaps room for improvement in terms of their depth.

Callum Camps has been a solid and reliable player at Edgeley Park, and Tyler Onyango has been a good loan signing from Everton, whilst Owen Moxon remains a very good League One player, albeit someone publicly criticised by Challinor in the past.

The level of Rathbone would be deemed as above that, though, and even a real contender to take the

place of Norwood during the run-in, should County pursue a move for the Lancastrian midfielder.

Matching industry and work ethic with an eye for a goal and a creative spark, Rathbone would return as one of the best players in the division, and it could well be that he is available for Stockport to pounce this winter.