Football League World
·8 July 2024
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·8 July 2024
Langstaff has been now confirmed as a Millwall player after excelling in the lower leagues
Former Millwall striker Teddy Sheringham believes that Macaulay Langstaff will thrive for his former club after his move from Notts County was completed on Monday afternoon.
Langstaff has built himself a reputation as one of the most potent goalscorers throughout the lower leagues of professional and non-league football in recent years, having not lost the knack of scoring goals at either Gateshead or Meadow Lane.
However, much can always be made about whether a striker has the capability to replicate such goalscoring form in divisions such as the National League or League Two in the Championship, with there being such a vast difference in opposition stature and ability.
Millwall were able to make the striker Neil Harris' first signing of the summer window and his second spell in charge, having returned to the Den in February after replacing Joe Edwards in the dugout.
Sheringham, who eventually rose to national prominence through featuring for the likes of Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United, as well as featuring in Terry Venables' Euro 96 squad, also started his career in South London back in 1983, going on to make 220 appearances for the Lions, netting on 93 occasions.
Keeping a close eye on developments at his first side, the 58-year-old has backed the club legend in the hotseat and fellow former forward, Harris, to make this deal a success in what is Langstaff's maiden taste of second tier football.
Speaking exclusively to FLW, via Crypto Sports Betting, Sheringham stated: "Absolutely. I have full faith in Neil Harris as the coach to be a success again at Millwall."
"He knows the type of player he wants and Langstaff has a good scoring record and fits the type of style that Harris wants to play at Millwall," he added.
"It's so important to secure goalscorers who know where the goal is and also the player must fit into the way the team wants to play and also what it means to play for Millwall."
Langstaff's career has followed a similar route to that of current Leicester City icon and former England international Jamie Vardy, although the former Fleetwood Town striker moved to the then second tier side at a slightly younger age.
After finding the net 11 times in 55 appearances for York City, the Stockton-On-Tees-born man moved to Gateshead and scored 33 times in just 61 games, before going on to even better his record for the Magpies as they won promotion from the National League before an inconsistent campaign in League Two last term, despite the form of their star performer.
Langstaff broke a fifth-tier record after scoring 42 times for County as they secured promotion via the play-offs against Chesterfield, before netting 29 in his first campaign in the EFL last season, earning the move to the Den.
Notts County's board of directors have since released an official statement on the transfer, stating "He thoroughly deserves this opportunity and has our utmost support moving forward."
“While we share our fans’ disappointment that we won’t see Macaulay in the black and white next season, we’d like to reassure them that this deal represents excellent value for the club – and that we have, of course, been factoring his potential departure into our plans as we look to build a highly-competitive squad this summer.
They concluded: “We should also all take collective pride in the part we’ve played in giving Macaulay the platform to step out of non-league and move into the second tier – a trajectory that only reflects well on us as a club.”
It has been reported by Edmund Brack of the South London Press that Millwall have paid County a six-figure sum for the striker's services, highlighting the club's well-documented transfer policy of finding efficient deals for the best possible value.
The likes of Tom Bradshaw, who only scored four goals in 34 last season, have been linked with potential moves away to Wrexham, meaning that a re-structure of the Millwall squad is likely to continue taking place over the course of the window.
It was reported back in January that Sunderland, Derby County and Middlesbrough had all expressed an interest in Langstaff for a higher valuation, which proves how much of a savvy deal this could prove to be if he hits the ground running in the second tier.