Derby County star should be top of Notts County's three-man transfer shortlist | OneFootball

We take a look at three players Notts should be targeting in January.

Notts County will be hoping to get their promotion push back on track over the course of the new year after an injury-affected recent period.

The last few months have seen first-team players Dan Crowley, Jodi Jones, Conor Grant, Curtis Edwards and Scott Robertson all spend significant periods on the sidelines.

The latter four are expected to return in January, according to Stuart Maynard, but will likely need a while to regain their match sharpness and get back up to speed, while Crowley is already back.

With that in mind, the January window could potentially be pivotal to the Magpies’ season. They need to bring reinforcements into the squad, with the wide and attacking positions particularly problem areas.

Here are three players who could be sensible additions for Notts in January.

Jacob Mendy

Notts desperately need quality cover in their wing-back areas. With Jodi Jones missing a large portion of the season, Notts have turned to the likes of Sam Austin and George Abbott to fill in on the flanks.

While both have done a steady job, it’s a situation that is far from ideal for a club chasing promotion and even though Jones is expected to return at some point in January, a new addition is a must while he gets back up to speed.

Wrexham’s Jacob Mendy could be the perfect man for the job. The Gambian has hardly played for The Red Dragons since their promotion to League One and, given the impressive form of Ryan Barnett and James McClean, looks unlikely to break into the fold any time soon.

Furthermore, a loan move to Meadow Lane could be the perfect option to get valuable minutes for the 27-year-old, who excelled at League Two level last term and would provide bags of energy and physicality for Notts out wide.

You would imagine Wrexham would be reluctant to part company with Mendy on a permanent basis at this stage of the season, but with Jones’ return hopefully not too far away, that would likely suit Notts just fine.

Mendy would perhaps be an ambitious target for Notts, but given the respect both clubs have for each other at board level, dating back to their National League days, it could potentially be an agreement that suits all parties.

Jack Stevens

Jack Stevens has been hugely impressive since his move to Solihull Moors back in March 2023.

The 24-year-old has had to work his way up through the non-league pyramid since being released by Oxford United’s academy and shone for National League North side Banbury United before joining the Moors.

The Welshman, who predominantly plays on the left for Solihull but can play through the middle, netted 17 in all competitions for the Moors last term and has gone from strength to strength so far this campaign.

The only permanent target to feature in this list, Stevens is already into double figures this season and was named in the National Legaue's Team of The Half Season.

The tricky, energetic forward is out of contract at the end of the season and is sure to have plenty of suitors, so January could be the perfect time for Notts to pounce. With so little time left on his deal, it’s unlikely Notts would have to part with a particularly big fee to secure his services.

While Stevens doesn’t necessarily cover a particular gap for Notts, we saw in the summer with the Lucas Ness deal that the board aren’t afraid to take up opportunities to sign a player with potential, even if they aren’t necessarily needed at that exact moment.

Stevens is clearly a player with a big future ahead of him and an EFL move is surely on the horizon, if not now, then in the summer.

The Magpies have had huge success looking below them in the pyramid in recent years, with all of Macaulay Langstaff, Cedwyn Scott, Sam Austin and Cal Roberts signed from sides in either the fifth or sixth tiers, Stevens could be the latest non-league star to impress at Meadow Lane.

Dajaune Brown

Notts could turn their attention to the other end of the A52 to bolster their frontline in January.

Derby County’s Dajaune Brown was a wanted man in the summer, with several League Two clubs thought to be chasing a loan move for the frontman.

It’s unclear whether Notts were one of those interested clubs, but they really should be turning their attention to Brown in the new year as he would be a near-perfect fit for what their attack is lacking.

The Nottingham-born 19-year-old was electric during a loan spell at Gateshead in the second half of last season, notching nine goals and eight assists from just 22 appearances in all competitions.

Rumours of another potential loan move rumbled on all summer but eventually Paul Warne opted to keep the 19-year-old at Pride Park.

Brown has since featured sporadically for the Rams in the Championship and with Warne chasing a striker once again, after failing to get one through the door at the end of the summer, the young forward could be set for another spell out on loan.

He would be an ideal fit for Notts. Their locality would allow Derby to easily keep tabs on their youngster and plenty of minutes would likely be available for him.

Brown would provide Notts with the pace and direct running that they lack in the final third. The youngster’s engine would allow Notts to better stretch opposition defences, opening up space for the likes of Crowley and David McGoldrick to get on the ball.

While Brown would only be a loan option, given the way they have tended to operate in the past, Notts would likely prefer that to a permanent deal at this stage of the season, allowing them to re-focus and plan something more concrete in the summer, depending on what division they’re in.