January transfer window should excite Grimsby Town faithful ahead of summer and 2025/26 | OneFootball

Grimsby's patience paid off in the recent transfer window, and their structured approach to recruitment could benefit them in the future.

Grimsby Town had to wait until 26th January for their first signing of the winter transfer window, but having acquired two long-term targets and kept hold of all of their key assets, the structured nature of their recruitment should please the Blundell Park faithful and see them look to the future with hope.

The Mariners had a quiet month on the whole, but while some of their League Two competitors had been frantically changing around their squads in an attempt to alter their fortunes, Grimsby were biding their time before paying fees for two players who they had been tracking for many months.

With fringe forward Rekeil Pyke, who joined National League Eastleigh on loan in recent weeks, being the only player to depart North East Lincolnshire in the window, Artell will be delighted to have retained all of his key men, many of whom are already under contract for next season and beyond.

He'll also be pleased to have once again been backed by the owners in acquiring a pair of players with real potential on long-term deals.

Irish winger Darragh Burns, signed for an undisclosed fee from fellow fourth-tier outfit MK Dons, though having spent the last year on loan in his home country with Shamrock Rovers, was first through the door.

The former St Patrick's Athletic man was quickly joined at Blundell Park by Hungarian-born Faroese midfielder Géza Dávid Turi, a player who has been on the Mariners' radar for many months, and one who also joined for an undisclosed fee, arriving from Betri Deildin Premier League club Víkingur in the final days of January.

Patience will be required to unlock duo's potential

While Burns and Turi, 22 and 23 years old respectively, have undoubted potential and could have a real impact on the future of their new club for many years to come, the pair have little experience of EFL football between them and will require patience to settle and adapt to their new surroundings.

With it currently being pre-season in the League of Ireland, now played mostly through the summer, Burns hasn't played for a few weeks, while Turi is coming from part-time football in the Faroe Islands. Another factor is the cultural changes the Faroese will experience, as well as how he handles playing abroad for the first time in his career.

Therefore, for differing reasons, Mariners fans may not see the best of either until next season. Artell's side's current top-half league position, however, gives them the perfect opportunity to gradually introduce their new men without the immediate desperation and pressure for points.

While Grimsby still have an outside shot at the play-offs, they, perhaps, remain a little way off competing with the top sides in the fourth tier at this juncture.

However, they've shown clear improvement on last season's struggles and will hope to use the next few months to get in the best shape possible to hit the ground running in 2025/26.

Burns' pace and Turi's technical qualities should improve the Mariners

The need to add pace in certain areas has become over the opening two-thirds of Grimsby's 2024/25 League Two campaign.

Aside from wide attacker Charles Vernam, who has struggled with injuries throughout the season, Artell's side have, at times, lacked that genuine speed to trouble opponents in different ways.

The addition of Burns will help in this regard, with the 22-year-old offering the sort of dynamism the Mariners have been crying out for.

The threat of that pace in behind will make opponents think twice about pressing Grimsby as intensely when they look to build from the back, therefore giving the likes of Cameron McJannet, and George McEachran more time on the ball to open teams up from deep.

Burns also has experience of playing as a wing-back and offers that versatility should the Mariners boss look to change shape at any point.

Midfielder Turi is best utilised in the holding role. Comfortable collecting the ball from his goalkeeper and defenders while under pressure, the former Víkingur man is exactly what Artell has been looking for to assist McEachran in building attacks from the back, allowing the likes of Kieran Green and Evan Khouri to maintain more box-to-box responsibilities in the engine room.

Tidy with both feet, Turi stands six feet tall, and once adjusted to the speed and requirements of League Two, the 23-year-old should help give the Mariners a stronger platform from which to carry out their manager's preferred possession-based style.

It may take both players some time to make their Grimsby debuts, and a little longer to adjust to their new club and environment, but on the face of it, January was a positive window for the Mariners, and their careful, considered approach to recruitment should excite the club's supporters for the future.