Notts County have been handed a boost over the last week or so with the return of David McGoldrick, despite suffering a setback against Chesterfield at the weekend.
The Magpies fell to a 2-1 defeat late-on to Paul Cook’s side at Meadow Lane, but showed plenty of promise with McGoldrick back in the side, especially in the first half.
The veteran frontman had been sidelined for over a month through injury, but returned with a bang in the midweek win over Grimsby, coming off the bench to seal all three points with a typically classy finish.
Across those two games, Notts have instantly looked a more threatening, creative outfit once again.
With McGoldrick having played from start to finish in the Chesterfield defeat, he is seemingly back to full fitness, which will surely have the Magpies’ promotion rivals looking over their shoulders to some extent.
McGoldrick’s return has re-vitalised Notts’ creativity
Over the last month or so, Notts have really struggled to find form. Since their defeat at Port Vale on 13th February (their first loss since New Year’s Day), the Magpies have picked up just two wins from eight games, a run of form which has seen them surrender their grip on an automatic promotion place.
In recent weeks, they have struggled badly in terms of creativity, especially at home. Despite having plenty of possession, as we have come to expect by now, Maynard’s side have lacked ingenuity, and failed to move the ball quickly enough in several of those games, resulting in them spending the majority of their time playing in front of their opponents.
McGoldrick’s quality and ability to create something out of nothing has become even more crucial since Dan Crowley departed the club in January, so his presence has been sorely missed of late.
Frankly, Notts don’t have another player who is capable of producing moments of quality quite like he can.
The former Derby County and Sheffield United man has been excellent again this season, and currently has 14 league goals and two assists to his name from just 27 games.
| David McGoldrick last 5 league seasons (as per FBref) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Club | League | Apps | Goals | Assists |
| 2024/25 | Notts County | League Two | 27 | 14 | 2 |
| 2023/24 | Notts County | League Two | 37 | 12 | 3 |
| 2022/23 | Derby County | League One | 39 | 22 | 5 |
| 2021/22 | Sheffield United | Championship | 19 | 2 | 4 |
| 2020/21 | Sheffield United | Premier League | 35 | 8 | 1 |
When he returned to action in the victory at Grimsby, there was a noticeable shift in the body language of the rest of the team. Notts were 1-0 up and coming under heavy pressure from their hosts, but when McGoldrick stepped onto the pitch in the 70th minute, it was clear to see that the belief had returned.
For the final 20 minutes of that game, Maynard’s men cut Grimsby open at will and looked back to their energetic and creative best.
The same was also the case during the first half on Saturday, even if they did ultimately go on to lose the game.
With crucial games lying ahead of them, McGoldrick’s return could have just given the Magpies a vital shot in the arm, at a time when they needed it most.
McGoldrick’s return will have Notts’ promotion rivals concerned
With a player of McGoldrick’s quality coming back into the fold so close to the end of the season, Notts’ promotion rivals will surely be looking over their shoulders to some degree.
The world’s oldest football league club are currently sat two points behind AFC Wimbledon in the final automatic promotion spot, and five behind second-placed Bradford, but there is still plenty of football to be played.
Maynard’s men have a perfect chance to lay down a marker this weekend, when they face Crewe Alexandra at Meadow Lane in the Saturday lunchtime kick-off, meaning they will get a chance to strike the first blow of the weekend and put pressure on their rivals.
Only time will tell whether McGoldrick’s return ends up being pivotal or not, but with the way League Two has played out this season, the promotion race will likely be decided by extremely fine margins and a player of the 37-year-old’s quality is capable of turning those in his team’s favour all by himself.
Notts still have plenty of tough tests ahead of them, with Crewe, Colchester, Bradford and Doncaster all still to play, but the return of their former academy graduate could provide them with that spark that they need to become a concern once again to the likes of Bradford and Wimbledon.
With every team at the top of League Two showing their inconsistency of late, it’s a genuine possibility that all three automatic promotion places could still be up for grabs.
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