5 Players Crawley Town Could Sign To Replace Orsi – Opinion

Having confirmed recently that Danilo Orsi has signed for divisional rivals Burton Albion, Crawley Town will now be in the market to replace him. 

The new man will have big boots to fill with Orsi scoring 25 goals in the 50 appearances made in all competitions. Here are five players who the Red Devils could look to replace Orsi with: 

Will Evans – Newport County

Will Evans had a breakout season last time out for Newport County and will have interest from a number of EFL clubs this summer. The 26 year old has had an interesting career to date having been released from Shrewsbury Town after coming through their academy. The striker then played part-time football for Cardiff Metropolitan University and Bala Town before turning professional with Newport in 2022.

His first season for the Exiles didn’t set the world alight, having scored 4 goals but Evans started shining during the 2023-24 season. The striker made 55 appearances for the South Wales side and scored a total of 25 goals in all competitions. 

The striker is someone who has age on his side and having only signed his first professional contract two years ago has plenty of potential to develop even further. Former team-mate at Bala Town, David Edwards said: 

“You know every single week you’re going to get 10 out of 10 work-rate, he’s an incredible specimen, the way he can run and how powerful he is. That really suits league football”. 

A striker who is clinical having reached his goals total from an unexpected goals figure (xG) of 19.55 could be useful for a Crawley side who might find chances hard to come by with the step up to League One.

Mark O’Mahony – Brighton & Hove Albion

A delve into the loan market might be an option for Crawley if they are looking to save some of the investment they received from Orsi for other areas of the pitch. A young striker at fellow Sussex side Brighton & Hove Albion may provide the solution.

Mark O’Mahony signed for the Premier League side’s academy from League of Ireland side Cork City in 2023 for a reported fee of £50,000 after winning the league title. The 19 year old has represented his native Ireland at international level for the U16’s up until the U21’s. 

The striker predominantly played for the seagull’s academy side last season having made 23 appearances in all competitions and scoring 18 goals. His performances and form for the academy earned him his senior debut for the club in April 2024 away to Burnley before taking part in games against AFC Bournemouth and Manchester City. The Brighton U21s coach had nothing but praise for the young striker: 

“He is an outstanding professional and human being in how he conducts himself and how hard he works. He has developed very quickly, he has embraced the football club and everything that the different departments have thrown at him to try to make him better”. 

It remains to be seen whether Crawley would put their faith in a striker who has only made 3 appearances in the English men’s game but it would be a cheap and risk free option for the Red Devils. 

Marcus Dinanga – Gateshead

Given Crawley’s ability to pick players out from non-league last season, they could well look at the same recruitment tactic again for this season. 

Marcus Dinanga has spent much of his career plying his trade in non-league football having come through the Burton Albion academy. Prolific spells at AFC Telford United and Matlock Town was enough for Altrincham to sign the striker ahead of the 2021-22 season. A number of loan spells again at Kidderminster Harriers and Dartford followed before Gateshead secured his services in February 2023. 

The 26 year old scored 7 goals in 18 appearances to help secure National League status at the end of the 2022-23 season for the Heed. Dinanga was the club’s top scorer last season, averaging over a goal every two games with a total of 26 goals in 50 appearances. Dinanga plays in a possession based style implemented by previous head coach Mike Williamson which is similar to the style of play used by Crawley in their successful promotion last season. 

The North East club exercised a contract option for Diangana following the conclusion of the 2023-24 season but may be open to offers should they be substantial enough. Signing Diangana would follow Crawley’s trend of purchasing talent from the non-league system and with age on the striker’s side, Dinanga could be the man to replace the outgoing Orsi. 

Modou (Mo) Faal – West Bromwich Albion 

Another option that Crawley could look at as a cheaper loan option is a loan move for Modou (Mo) Faal who is currently under contract at West Bromwich Albion. 

Faal was born in The Gambia but moved to Birmingham as a youngster before joining the West Brom’s academy at the age of 16. He has made two appearances for the Championship club but has spent the majority of his career out on loan at various clubs including Hereford, AFC Telford United and AFC Fylde.

Last season, the 21 year old spent the season at two League Two clubs in Doncaster Rovers and Walsall. Having started the season in Yorkshire, Faal played a total of 33 games for Doncaster and scored 9 goals. Things didn’t go to plan at Rovers and Faal was recalled and sent on loan closer to home with Walsall for the second half of the season. 

He went on to score 6 goals in the 20 appearances made for the Sadlers and help propel the side to the edge of the playoffs. The striker is a threat in the air having won 4.58 aerial duels per 90 minutes on average and took an average of 2.76 shots on goal per 90 minutes. Although not an ideal striker for a possession heavy style of play, Faal is very much capable of playing alongside another striker within the 3-5-2 formation used at times by Crawley last season. 

Alfie Rutherford – Dorking Wanderers 

A player who has had his injury struggles recently may not be high on the list but there is no doubt Rutherford is an outstanding goalscorer given his previous record. 

The Dorking Wanderers striker made 20 appearances for the relegated side last season with a number of these from the bench. Despite this, Rutherford still scored 5 goals and will want to be getting back to the goalscoring form he showed prior to his knee ligament injury and open-heart surgery.

The 25-year-old signed for the Wanderers from Havant and Waterlooville ahead of the 2020/21 season and scored 30 goals in the 35 appearances he made during their promotion season from the National League South. In 2022, Dorking manager Marc White said it would take a ‘Jamie Vardy’ esc offer for the striker to leave the club. 

Having not played EFL football in his career, a move by Crawley would be a significant risk and a transfer that would likely require patience. However, there can be no doubt given his scoring record in non-league that Rutherford has an eye for goal and finding his post-injury form could provide an opportunity for Crawley to capture a goalscorer in waiting.