Exeter City: Gary Caldwell has big Demetri Mitchell dilemma - he could be facing impossible situation | OneFootball

Demetri Mitchell is injured and out of contract again and it feels like this summer he may leave which puts Gary Caldwell in a very tough position.

It's rare that Exeter City manage to get their hands on a player with the qualities that Demetri Mitchell possesses.

The Manchester United academy product has been at St James Park since January 2023 after struggling to get games at Hibernian in the Scottish Premiership during a 12-month spell at Easter Road.

When he arrived, he immediately established himself as one of the Grecians' best players, with pace and technical ability as well as an eye for a spectacular goal.

As with all players who stand out at Exeter, thoughts soon turned to where he'd go next at the end of his contract.

However, he picked up a serious knee injury in November of 2023 which kept him out for 12 months and also saw him extend his contract for another 12 months in the summer of 2024, with him effectively set to miss the first half of the 2024/25 campaign.

Fast-forward to now and Mitchell is again out of contract and is again injured, though not as badly as first feared, and it seems likely he'll be fit and ready to face much more of the next season than the one that's just finished.

While City had an advantage in getting Mitchell to extend his initial deal last summer due to his injury status, that might not be in play this time around, or if it is, it won't be as strong because physically he's in a better place.

Mitchell is class but injuries have hampered him

The 28-year-old hasn't played as much football as he or the club would have liked since that serious knee injury almost two years ago, and in total, he's made 61 appearances for the Grecians in two and a half years.

This season he made just 23 appearances with only 12 of them coming from the off.

Maybe he fancies a fresh start and a new chance to put his injury problems behind him. Maybe he still feels he has a point to prove at Exeter.

Whatever the thought process is and whatever offers he may have on the table, the fact is that City will really struggle to replace him if he does leave.

The injuries have softened the blow of a likely exit and also lessened his impact on the team, but when fit it's hard to think of anyone with more overall ability in both directions who's played on the left-hand side for City in recent years.

Exeter have to busy in transfer window

It's going to be a very busy summer for Exeter with plenty of spots to fill, and it feels like Caldwell might need to find two left backs/left wing backs with Vincent Harper already confirmed as departing, much to the surprise of many of the Grecian faithful.

While Mitchell's City career has tailed off, if it is to be the end, there's no doubting his quality when fit.

He's the club's best wide player by a mile, especially when you consider his talent going forward in relation to the rest.

If Caldwell and the recruitment team are to find someone close to the former Blackpool man's quality, it's going to be a real rabbit out of the hat job, and it's a task that is doubly difficult with two players required in that position.

With the club recording a lower league position and points tally than the year previous, it feels a bit like the Grecians are on a knife edge and every position needs strengthening other than perhaps central defence.

Caldwell and Co. need to get an awful lot right this summer just to keep the Grecians comfortable in that mid-table position and, with such an emphasis on the full-backs, it's hard to see a player better than Mitchell arriving, though one with a better fitness record should be possible. When it comes to replacing quality, though, it might just be an impossible job.