Championship side Stoke City have agreed a deal with League One Northampton Town for the transfer of Liam McCarron for an undisclosed fee following a successful trial period at the club.
The 23-year-old winger is a product of the Carlisle United academy, departing the now-League Two side for Leeds United in 2019. He largely featured for the youth sides at Elland Road but did make his Premier League debut under Marcelo Bielsa against Arsenal.
In 2022 he linked up with Stoke City for an undisclosed fee, with the promise of first team football. However shortly afterwards the manager that made this promise Michael O’Neill was sacked. He was then sent out on loan to rivals Port Vale, only making four appearances before returning to his parent club.
He now departs Stoke having made only one appearance for the Potters. The League One side have secured the signing, according to the Northampton Chronicle.
The player trained with the club during pre-season and appeared in their friendly fixtures against Norwich City and Peterborough Sports, reportedly impressing manager Jon Brady.
He joins new signings Cameron McGeehan, Tom Eaves, James Wilson, Nikola Tzanev, Jack Baldwin, Matt Dibley-Dias and Callum Morton to become the club’s eighth new player.
A challenging season for Northampton Town
Northampton Town have impressed in recent seasons despite not pulling up many trees in League One, they have become a solid addition to the third tier, able to hold their own against some of the more cash rich opposition.
However, this season could prove even more challenging with the league looking extremely strong with the three relegated sides and the promoted League Two sides all looking stronger than the sides they have replaced. Big hitters such as Bolton Wanderers, Peterborough United and Barnsley are still present and strengthening also which could mean Northampton face a challenge just to stand still.