Nigel Clough is hoping Matty Longstaff can add an extra dimension to Mansfield Town's midfield after he made the loan move from Newcastle United on deadline day.
The 21-year-old has struggled for game time at the Magpies under Eddie Howe and has now joined the Stags after returning from a loan spell at Aberdeen.
Since scoring on his Newcastle debut against Manchester United back in October 2019, Longstaff has made just 20 appearances in all competitions and hasn't been able to build on a positive first season in senior football.
However, he will be looking to gain some valuable minutes at Mansfield between now and the end of the season as he tries to help the Stags to promotion to League One.
Clough's side currently sit fifth in the fourth tier and are the division's most in-form team at the moment, having won eight of their last nine matches despite drawing their last game 0-0 at Harrogate Town.
Speaking after the stalemate in North Yorkshire, Clough has explained what Longstaff could bring to the club and he wants him to hit the ground running at the One Call Stadium.
Clough told The Courier : "We certainly weren’t at our best and I’m glad we brought some players in before the transfer window closed to freshen things up.
"We were well off it in the first half. Ollie Clarke gave lots of free-kicks away just through fatigue and it was the same with George Maris and Ryan Stirk in midfield – they were nowhere near as good as they have been.
"The chance to get Matty Longstaff in came pretty late in the afternoon. He was lined up to go somewhere else, but it didn’t happen.
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"We got a shout to see if we wanted to take him and he wants to play because he went to Aberdeen and didn’t play as much as he’d have liked.
"Hopefully, he can supplement our midfield and give us that bit of quality that might have been the difference against Harrogate."
Longstaff could make his Mansfield debut when they host Colchester United on Tuesday, February 8.
At just 21, this may be the loan move he needs to kickstart his career as there's no doubt he has showed plenty of potential at Newcastle.
