Kyle Wootton? The 3 Stockport County players that need to prove a point in pre-season or risk 2024/25 axe | OneFootball

There will be strong competition for starting places at Edgeley Park next season

The new season presents a tough challenge and a big opportunity for Stockport County as they embark on their return to League One.

Still on a high following their fourth-tier title-winning season, the club will now look to consolidate their place in their new league.

The Hatters have already drafted in a strong selection of relatively young talent for the task, leaving some of the more established names at Edgeley Park battling for places.

Here, Football League World look at three Stockport players who need to prove a point in pre-season to stamp their mark on the first team.

Kyle Wootton

Kyle Wootton's campaign last season took a while to start, having suffered a setback at the back end of the previous season, and he never quite found his usual performance levels for the remainder.

Eight goals and seven assists in 32 league appearances is still a respectable return, but if manager Dave Challinor switches to a single striker with two wingers either side - as this summer's signings suggest he might - Wootton will need to prove why he deserves to start ahead of 20-goal forward Tanto Olaofe.

It's tricky to predict how the summer signings will impact Wootton. If the new wingers, Jack Diamond and Jayden Fevrier, are deployed as traditional wingers to whip crosses in, we could see the best of the former Notts County man this season.

It could equally work against him if the wide pair are deployed as "inverted" wingers, on the opposite side to their natural foot so they can cut inside, as there will be fewer balls for Wootton to get on the end of.

That coupled with the fact that Wootton turns 28 this season, at a time when the club have expressed a desire to go for a younger squad, makes the new campaign an important one for Wootton to make himself indispensable to the club.

Jack Stretton

Through no fault of his own, Jack Stretton enters the new season with a lot to prove at Edgeley Park if he is going to extend his time with the club.

The 22-year-old suffered an ACL injury before the last campaign had even begun, ruling him out for the entirety of the 2023/24 season.

It means that despite having been with the Hatters permanently now for almost 18 months, he only has 24 appearances to his name, five of which came in an earlier short-term loan spell while the club was still in the National League.

The upcoming pre-season will come as a chance for Stretton to prove what he's about and how he's recovered from that major setback.

With a deal that expires this time next year, this season will be a pivotal one for the former Derby County man.

Ibou Touray

Ibou Touray faced harsh criticism last season and, although much of it was unjustified, it was clear that the Gambia international was playing with low confidence at times, especially in possession.

Still, that did not prevent him clocking one goal and nine assists throughout the season, the one goal coming against his former club, Salford City, in a televised game under relatively intense pressure.

If Challinor does opt to go with a back four next season, Touray could be a key beneficiary of the switch as he thrives in the traditional left-back role. Most of his most notable poor showings came when he was playing in unfamiliar roles on the left of a back three or at wing-back, a fact the manager noted in his defence during the season.

The reason this pre-season will be so important for Touray is that he will have Ryan Rydel to contend with this season, who missed the majority of the last campaign through injury.

Further defensive reinforcements could also free up centre-back Ethan Pye to play in a traditional left-back role, as he did at times last season.

With a step up in division to contend with too, Touray will need to hit the ground running ahead of 2024/25 if he wants to keep his place in the team, as he will have plenty of young, hungry replacements waiting in the wings this term.