Notts County are set to do battle once again with National League winners Wrexham this summer. This time though, it is not on the pitch, it is to retain the services of striker Macauley Langstaff as Wrexham have reportedly joined Plymouth and Ipswich in attempting to lure the striker away from Meadow Lane, according to an exclusive report from Football League World.
The Welsh side, backed by Hollywood duo Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, returned to the Football League after claiming the National League title this season after an epic battle with Notts County. During that season County striker Macauley Langstaff scored 42 goals in 47 games, a National League record. That has reportedly garnered the club’s interest, as FLW state from their sources that Wrexham boss Phil Parkinson is ‘quite interested’ in securing the services of Langstaff. However, they face tough competition, as there is interest higher up the football pyramid from two sides that also secured promotion this season, as Plymouth and Ipswich look to bolster their squads for Championship football.
Wrexham beat Notts County to automatic promotion as they secured the league title with a game to spare, meanwhile, Notts had to take the difficult route through the playoffs and made it hard for themselves as they had to battle from behind in both the semi-final and the final. The semi-final saw the club fight from two goals down as Aden Baldwin scored in the seventh minute of injury time to take it to extra time before Jodi Jones scored in the final minute of extra time to break Boreham Wood hearts. The final saw the club have to fight from behind twice, once in regulation and once in extra time as they went on to beat Chesterfield on penalties to secure their return to the Football League.
Langstaff has made quite a name for himself as a prolific goalscorer since arriving at Notts County last summer after arriving from Gateshead, where he signed a three-year contract upon his arrival at Meadow Lane. That long-term contract means the club does have security around his valuation, but you would imagine they prefer to keep their star striker on the books as they look to build upon their EFL return, but this could prove difficult with so much interest in him. The striker spent time with Middlesborough as a youth player, but this would be his first season playing football above National League level. Of course, many would say it is a risk for a club to take a striker on from that level to the Championship, but we have seen it pay off before, as Leicester City signed non-league striker Jamie Vardy on before he would go on to break records in the Premier League with the Foxes as well as being a part of their fairytale title-winning team.
Plymouth and Ipswich are also reportedly keen on bringing Langstaff to the Championship and could we see somewhat of a repeat of Jamie Vardy’s career if one of those moves were to happen? The two clubs secured promotion from League One this season, beating Sheffield Wednesday to the automatic promotion spots and will both be playing Championship football next season. Despite being a League Two club now, with their ownership situation, Wrexham can certainly compete with these two financially in attempts to secure the striker’s signature. With his contract nowhere close to running up and his goalscoring form proving so prolific this season, Langstaff will certainly command a hefty transfer fee if anyone is to lure him away from Meadow Lane.
Writer’s View
Langstaff has shown his goalscoring prowess this year and it is no surprise that has put many clubs on alert to attempt to capture his signature, all the clubs involved here also have a proven goalscorer among their ranks and adding Langstaff to that could make them a force to be reckoned with next season if he can do it in the EFL as well. With that being said, Notts will be extremely reluctant to let go of the striker and it will take a lot to secure his services from them in this transfer window.
