Peterborough’s Loss, Stockport’s Gain: Mothersille’s Shock Exit, and Two Targets to Replace Him

Malik Mothersille has joined Stockport County this afternoon in what could be a calamitous blow for Posh who have now lost arguably their best attacking player to a League One rival. This leaves Peterborough with a real issue in attacking depth with our number 10 position being occupied by Chris Conn-Clarke and Donay O'brien-Brady, and our striker position only having Gustav Lindgren. Darren Ferguson has made it crystal clear that there is no plan for Bradley Ihonvien.

Photo credit: Rex Features

In this Peterborough United system, a number 10 is integral to it’s success and that is where Malik Mothersille has predominantly operated. With this in mind, we need to act fast in his replacement as a rigorous preseason schedule is upon us. I have listed the two key transfer targets I would look to bring in to replace the gaping hole Mothersille has left.

Samson Tovide

Mothersille played multiple roles last season as Darren Ferguson tried to find a tactic that suited the squad. We often saw Mothersille play as a deeper striker or a number 10, meaning replacing him becomes a difficulty. Tovide to me is the perfect Mothersille replacement. He is 21 years old and has amassed 84 career appearances in League Two, scoring 13 goals and 12 assists. Tovide can play off both flanks and through the middle, which would make him a fantastic asset for Posh, as we saw Ephron Mason-Clark, Poku and Ricky-Jade Jones be so successful because of their ability to play fluently and interchange across the front three- Tovide brings that same quality. I personally think Tovide would be a fantastic addition to our squad and is the perfect profile of player we should be signing.

Kamari Doyle

As I mentioned before, Mothersille played in multiple roles and one role we lack depth in is that number 10 which seemed to be the space Mothersille occupied. Kamari Doyle would be another fantastic addition to our squad. The 19-year-old ended the League One season with 7 goals and 4 assists in 21 matches for Crawley Town and is a player who is fantastic on the eye. Darragh MacAnthony has already prefaced that loans would be unlikely this season. TransferMarkt has Doyle at an estimated £400,000 transfer fee which if true for such a young talent represents great value. He was a player that really stood out to me when Posh played Crawley in the 4-3 victory at the back end of last season and again fits the profile of a player we should be looking at. Like Tovide, Doyle has found success in multiple roles this season making most of his appearances as a second striker (8) and an attacking midfielder (7) but has also found success from deeper in the midfield.

We have to act swiftly in replacing Mothersille. Whatever you thought of him, his presence on the pitch was of a top calibre and he will be missed. If we want to make improvements to our league position on 24/25, getting this transfer right could be make or break. Get it right and we could really fight for a play-off spot, but get it wrong and we could see a repeat from last season, possibly with a far worse outcome.