Chesterfield are interested in bringing Dilan Markanday, who spent the first half of this season on loan with the Spireites, back to the club on a permanent basis following his release by Blackburn Rovers, as per the Derbyshire Times.
A Breakout Season
Markanday enjoyed an illustrious youth career with Tottenham Hotspur, which saw him get nominated for the Premier League 2 Player of the Season award in 2022, though he had struggled to make his mark in men’s football before this season.
The Barnet-born man played 35 times for Blackburn Rovers either side of a failed loan spell at Aberdeen, but he never started regularly whilst at Ewood Park.
At the start of this season, he joined newly-promoted Chesterfield on loan and exploded into life.
Markanday was consistently excellent in a Spireites team that was marred by injuries in the first half of the campaign. He scored seven goals and made three assists in 24 games for Paul Cook’s side as he was one of the best attackers in the fourth tier.
Despite only being in Derbyshire for half of the season, Markanday registered more expected assists than 81.3% of League Two wingers and he had more xG on target than 91.1% of his counterparts.
This good form prompted Blackburn to recall the attacker and send him to League One with Leyton Orient.
Markanday’s stint at the London club started well as he scored twice in his first three games for the O’s. But, he fell out of Richie Wellens’ plans towards the end of the season as he played just eight minutes of Orient’s unsuccessful playoff campaign.
Writer’s View
It is not surprising that Chesterfield are interested in bringing Markanday back to the SMH Group Stadium, but they will surely face stiff competition for the 23-year-old.
He was statistically one of the best wingers in League Two this season and his time in League One was solid, if unspectacular. This may mean that the Spireites will have to outcompete League One teams as well as other League Two clubs.
But, a return to Chesterfield could be very enticing for the former Spurs youth player. Paul Cook is an excellent coach and, so far, the only manager who has been able to get the best out of Markanday in men’s football.
The Spireites have also shown immense ambition over the past few seasons and will be looking to win promotion into the third tier next season. Returning to Derbyshire may allow Markanday to get back into League One in the long run whilst also being at a club which he knows and loves.
