Nottingham Forest gem Aaron Donnelly was once again in action as Port Vale ended their poor run of form at the weekend. The defender lined up as the left-sided centre-back as Darrell Clarke utilised three at the back.
The 19-year-old was allowed to join Port Vale on loan for the remainder of the campaign in January. He had been a regular in the under-21 outfit at the City Ground during the first half of 2022/23.
Donnelly is rated highly by Steve Cooper. He handed him a first-team debut back in August, with the defender playing the full game as Forest beat Grimsby 3-0 in the Carabao Cup.
Now, he’s gaining some invaluable experience at a League One club. The Valiants play football the right way under the influence of Clarke and they’re in a good place right now.
Intriguingly, Donnelly hadn’t been part of a Vale outfit that had won a game before Saturday. They were slipping into a relegation battle but a 1-0 win over Exeter has now breathed some life into the campaign.
After the game, he received some praise from Stoke on Trent Live. They gave him a 7/10 for his performance and claimed: “The 19-year-old on-loan Nottingham Forest defender looked the part on the left of the back three. His best performance since his debut away at Cheltenham.”
Donnelly in action for Port Vale and he’s progressing nicely
At 19-years-old, there will be peaks and troughs when it comes to a player’s form. Donnelly will hope to stay in the team and keep learning as the season reaches the business end.
Forest will be keeping close tabs on Donnelly during his time on loan at Vale Park. Cooper is a huge fan of the player and praised him after his Reds debut back in August.
Donnelly has arguably joined the perfect club for his first move into men’s football. Clarke gets his teams playing the right way and he’s renowned for utilising younger players to make up his team.
As a left-footed option, the teenager has a lot to offer Forest. As a result, he will hope to finish the season strongly and return with the intention of breaking into the senior squad.
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