Blackpool defender Dan Sassi has extended his stay at Rochdale until the end of the season, having initially joined the non-league outfit on loan, the club have officially confirmed.
The young central defender moved to Bloomfield Road during the winter transfer window from Burnley for an undisclosed fee, having failed to make a first-team appearance for last season’s Championship champions, although he was an unused sub for the Clarets last season in a 1-0 win over Fleetwood Town in the FA Cup.
In the last week of February, it was confirmed that the 20-year-old would head out on a one-month loan deal with Rochdale to gain some experience in the men’s game. Since then, Sassi has made six appearances for Dale under the guidance of Jimmy McNulty, who was a centre-back himself during his playing days.
Dan Sassi has extended his stay on loan from Blackpool until the end of the season 🙌
Meanwhile, Max Taylor has joined Solihull Moors on loan, also for the remainder of the campaign 🤝#RAFC
— Rochdale AFC (@officiallydale) March 26, 2024
Now, it has been announced that Sassi will spend the remainder of the campaign on loan at the Crown Oil Arena in Greater Manchester as he continues getting valuable experience for Rochdale in an unforgivable league.
In a club statement that was published on Tuesday morning, Blackpool wished “Dan the best of luck for the remainder of the campaign” as Rochdale contend for a return to the English Football League, currently sitting in tenth-place, seven points behind the final play-off spot with merely six games remaining.
Meanwhile, Neil Critchley’s Blackpool are also locked in a tense battle for the play-offs in League One and face a tricky fixture away at automatic promotion hopefuls Derby County this Friday. The Seasiders are three points behind sixth place but have some winnable games on the horizon against Wycombe Wanderers, Cambridge United, Fleetwood Town and Carlisle United.
Writer’s View
Sassi simply wouldn’t get into the first-team at Blackpool if he had returned from his loan spell at Rochdale. The stakes are so high for the Tangerines right now and Critchley certainly wouldn’t have wanted to throw the youngster into the deep end.
The defender is highly thought-of at Bloomfield Road and has a very bright future with the club. However, learning his trade at Dale in a gruelling division is much more beneficial to him at this moment than watching Blackpool from the bench or even playing for the side’s reserves.
