Stockport County transfer need is clear following new Wrexham AFC evidence | OneFootball

It’s an area that the Hatters will need to target in the summer transfer window

Stockport County suffered a 1-0 loss to fellow promotion rivals Wrexham AFC over the weekend, and they were also served a reminder of their upcoming summer transfer needs.

A Jay Rodriguez penalty – the awarding of which was surrounded by controversy after the referee didn’t give it before overturning that decision following protests from James McClean and others – was all that separated the two sides on the day.

But the disappointing afternoon didn’t end there for the Hatters, as they also lost loanee defender Brad Hills for their upcoming games against Burton Albion, after he received two yellow cards against Wrexham.

Already short in defence, the fairly innocuous incident exposed just how crucial it is that County strengthen there in the summer.

Hills sending off exposes Stockport County squad issue

Hills – on loan with the Hatters from Norwich City until the end of the season – received the second yellow for a fairly tame infringement on the halfway line, one that he likely felt he could get away with.

But the referee saw things differently, brandishing the yellow card, which condemned the centre-back to the dressing room and a suspension for the next game.

He is one of only three or four out-and-out centre-backs at the club, along with Fraser Horsfall and Ethan Pye, dependent on what you see as the adaptable Callum Connolly’s best position.

The latter has been filling in well for Horsfall, who has been the Hatters’ main centre-back for a couple of seasons now, but has been injured since the end of December.

Luck saves the day for Dave Challinor

Hills’ sending off, therefore, would have left 22-year-old Pye and Connolly as the only regular central defenders at the club but, with an incredible stroke of luck, the Wrexham game was Horsfall’s first back in the matchday squad since suffering his setback, meaning he will likely have enough in the tank to make a full return as Hills serves his suspension.

That fact is pure luck, and without his return, Hills’ unpredictable absence would have needed covering with a significant amount of squad reshuffling.

It would likely have seen Ryan Rydel taking the left wing-back spot and Ibby Touray filling in as part of the back three, a position he struggled with at points last season.

County may not be so lucky with the timing of a return like Horsfall’s next time, with Hills’ dismissal exposing how threadbare Dave Challinor’s squad is in defence.

Not much would have to go against his side to plunge the Hatters into a substantial selection crisis.

Two factors mean there will be an even greater defensive need for the Hatters

Already lacking, the Hatters could have even more defensive spots to fill come the summer.

Hills is, of course, only on loan with the club until the end of the season. He’s been a stand-out star in County’s defensive unit but at only 21 years old, if the Hatters don’t go up, it seems likely he will want a Championship place next season, whether that be with Norwich or elsewhere.

And similar is true of Pye, who is County’s player, but given his adaptation to the third tier, establishing himself as one of the club’s key defenders aged just 22, he will undoubtedly attract interest of his own.

Owner Mark Stott is keen on finding young, talented players and shifting them on for a profit – if he wants his club to earn such a reputation, then Pye looks an ideal test case, but he would take some replacing.

Already short, that may leave the Hatters seeking out as many as three central defenders; two to cover potential outgoings and a third to bolster what have been critical numbers this term.

Whether earning a spot in the Championship or gearing up for another promotion battle in League One, it’s set to be an important summer for the Hatters.