2 bargain free transfers Notts County could consider ft Mo Eisa | OneFootball

It's been a busy summer at Notts County, but there's still time for Stuart Maynard to get more bodies through the door.

After last weekend’s season opener saw Notts County draw 0-0 away at Tranmere Rovers, attention once again turns to how the Magpies’ squad could be improved with just two weeks remaining until the summer transfer window comes to a close.

Stuart Maynard’s side have been hit with several injuries over the course of pre-season and with Matty Palmer, Nick Tsaroulla, Kellan Gordon, Rod McDonald and Scott Robertson all unavailable for Saturday’s curtain raiser, concerns over the depth of the squad have once again been highlighted.

Squad depth became an issue for Notts after the early stages of last season and Maynard will be keen to avoid the same fate this time around.

We are, however, at the stage of the summer where options become a little more limited, with the transfer window beginning to near its close. With that in mind, here are two free agents Notts could target to add the finishing touches to their squad.

Haji Mnoga

With last Friday’s untimely e to potential promotion rivals MK Dons, Notts are now short of depth on their right flank, with Kellan Gordon now the only senior player at the club who is a natural right wing-back.

Maynard has previously referenced the abilities of both Jodi Jones and Nick Tsaroulla to operate on the right wing, but with Tsaroulla suffering an injury that kept him out of the entirety of pre-season, that isn’t an immediate option for The Magpies.

Maynard may instead turn to Haji Mnoga.

Mnoga has been on trial at Notts this summer, and even featured as recently as The Magpies’ last pre-season clash, with Peterborough United on 3rd August.

The 22-year-old was released by boyhood club Portsmouth in the summer, having spent last season on loan at Aldershot Town in the National League. The combative defender started 36 games for a Shots side that missed out on a play-off spot on the final day of the season.

More of a natural right back, Mnoga represents a much more defensive-minded option than Nemane. This increased solidity would be welcome for Notts, as they struggled to defend their flanks last season with two converted wingers operating in the wing-back roles.

The Tanzanian international could even provide welcome depth on the right side of the Notts back three, something which could be vitality important if Robbie Cundy continues to struggle with injuries.

All in all, Mnoga would be a shrewd bit of business for Maynard and Notts.

Mohamed Eisa

It’s been several seasons since Eisa burst onto the EFL scene at Cheltenham Town and his career is in need of a reset, which Notts could provide.

The 30-year-old Sudan international was released by MK Dons after three years at the Buckinghamshire outfit and with Macaulay Langstaff’s departure leaving Notts with just three recognised strikers at senior level, Eisa could be a perfect fit for Maynard’s plans.

The pacy frontman scored five goals in 20 league appearances for MK last season, before a loan move to Exeter City in January brought 11 appearances in League One and one goal.

However, with Notts’ transfer policy centering around finding hidden value within players, they may well back themselves to re-ignite the form which at one point saw Eisa become one of the hottest properties in the lower leagues.

23 goals for Cheltenham in 2017/18 and then 14 goals in just 29 games for Peterborough in 2019/20 show that Eisa is a very capable finisher if you can get the best out of him.

Notts’ possession-heavy style of play requires space between the lines for the likes of Dan Crowley to operate in, and Eisa’s pace would provide the ability to stretch defences that Notts’ attack is currently lacking somewhat.

He would also be capable of bringing similar energy to Langstaff when pressing the opposition, something which is integral to Maynard’s system.

With Newport County’s Will Evans (who Notts were linked with all summer) joining Mansfield recently, it looks increasingly likely that a big-money replacement for Langstaff is now off the cards. Eisa could be the man to turn to.