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Like most Magpies supporters, I am immensely gutted by the departure of Ryan Yates who has joined Scunthorpe United after being recalled by our neighbours Nottingham Forest.
It’s sad enough that a parent club could force a move in spite of a player's wishes.
Yet to remove their chances of helping aside secure promotion, either as champions of their respective division or as automatic hopefuls, just doesn’t make much sense at all.
There’s no denying how beneficial the move had been for us, as Yates has proven himself as a major force within our midfield.
The decision to recall him, only to loan him out to a side chasing promotion in League One seems quite bizarre on paper, as for me it undoes all the hard work that he put into the first part of the season by removing him from the opportunity to play within a very settled environment.
People might suggested that Scunthorpe United may gain promotion themselves, however I feel this is unlikely – whereas there is a strong possibility that we could continue to fight for top spot in League Two.
Happiness for any player is a big part of their game, as is togetherness – uprooting a player and expecting them to repeat their earlier performances within an unknown dressing room is such a huge risk in its own right.
I do understand why Nottingham Forest would want to access his development, yet this just seems very rushed and somewhat mismanaged.
Since their new manager, Aitor Karanka, has only arrived recently, it’s quite baffling as to whom made the decision.
The one thing we as fans simply can’t get our heads around, but it has happened and our club now has to decide if or who should replace him.
Honestly, I didn’t see this happening and I felt that the media reports merely attempted to create the headlines.
Would it not make sense to allow Yates to continue his loan spell at Meadow Lane and then reassess his future/development?
I do believe that he’s going to be a big player, yet I don’t think his level is quite polished even in League Two and the experience gained here seemed beyond just that.
I would go as far as saying the whole vibe around the club has a dramatic effect on young players, if you believe in something and see that your contributions are helping – even appreciated, well it enables you to play at such a higher level of football.
Along with the league and cup success, it really adds to the difficulty in understanding the situation and I don’t see Scunthorpe United as being candidates to repeat what magic Yates would have had here.
I really can’t see them gaining promotion from League One, it’s very tough and there are far better teams around them which will have a more refined squad in terms of depth.
As a fan I can’t complain about the season, and this situation is merely an unwanted distraction.
I am certain Kevin Nolan will be accessing what areas need strengthening, yet this does create the situation of do we need extra cover?
Personally, I think Michael O’Connor and Liam Noble can fill the position and do it well.
I would also like to see another young player with a similar playing style as Yates come in, just as we might need extra depth and having that finer quality does make a huge difference.
To summarise this, regardless of the ins and outs of the loan deal – I feel Forest haven’t done themselves any favours.
I believe it doesn’t remotely help Yates, and I see this without wearing any tinted glasses.
The quality of players around any player is enough to help shape and mould them, if we were talking about a Wigan or Blackburn – I might see things a little differently.
It still wouldn’t make me feel any less different about if the decision was right or wrong, and if Notts had a ‘season long loan’ then I would steer clear of developing any of Forest players in the future.
Why risk this situation happening again? I don’t believe it casts a good light on them as a football club.
I would hope that this decision doesn’t have an adverseeffect on the club, as I do think the event may leave some distractions and unhappiness around the Magpies camp.
However, the professional approach would be to focus as quickly as possible on adding the depth mentioned before the January transfer window closes.
Hopefully it's business as usual, we will be able to patch the squad up and continue as we were.
Good luck to Ryan Yates lastly, it has been a real pleasure to see him do very well in the Black & White shirt and just seeing his enthusiasm whilst playing seems a real honour for us.
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