Stockport County have announced something of a coup by securing a deal to bring talented Icelandic forward Benoný Breki Andrésson to the club in January, subject to receiving a work permit and international clearance.
The 19-year-old finished the 2023/24 campaign as the top scorer in the Icelandic top flight with 21 goals after an incredible run of 11 goals in the final five games. Andrésson scored five goals in a 7-0 win over HK Kópavogs on the final match-day of the 2024 Icelandic top-flight play-offs.
Stockport County Announce Deal For Talented Prospect
The Hatters have been excellent in the third tier after winning the League Two title in 2023/24. Dave Challinor’s side sit in the top five and have picked up 15 points from the last 18 available with their only defeat coming at Birmingham City.
They were knocked out of the EFL trophy by League Two Bradford but have progressed into the third round of the FA Cup, where they will travel to Premier League Crystal Palace. There is a positive vibe around the club due to their impressive start to the campaign and the signing of Andrésson is another sign that the club are set to continue their recent rise up the EFL pyramid.
The Icelandic forward scored 34 goals in just 58 matches for KR Reykjavík and was almost unplayable towards the end of the most recent season. In addition to his five-goal haul as mentioned above, he scored four times in a 7-1 win over Fram Reykjavík in September.
This deal is a real statement for a club in League One as Andrésson is a player who could have gone to a side playing at a much higher level due to his goalscoring exploits in the top-flight of a European league that has been significantly improving its UEFA Co-Efficient ranking in previous seasons.
Director of Football Simon Wilson was delighted to get the deal over the line but also cautioned that it may take time for the player to fulfil his potential, telling the club’s official website:
“Benoný is what we call an emerging talent signing, someone who we believe has high potential for the future but requires a development plan and huge effort from all parties to get him to where we think he can be.
“He has an opportunity at a great Club, with great staff, players, and facilities, to create a very exciting future for himself.
“We have to remember he is a young person coming to a new country and must be patient with him, but if we all get our heads down and work well together we are confident of success.”
New Signing May Be a Replacement For League One Top Scorer
The other end of this deal is that it may signal that Louie Barry could be on his way out of Edgeley Park. The Aston Villa loanee has rekindled the type of form many expected when he first broke through at the Premier League side to sit on top of the League One scoring charts with 14 goals.
The 21-year-old is clear of any of his teammates for efforts on goal and successful dribbles and should he leave to further his development at a higher level, it would be almost an impossible task to replace his output.
A report from TeamTalk indicates that several Championship clubs are in the running for his signature as his parent club would like the winger to play at a higher level. This story has been a regular feature over the past few weeks and the signing of Andrésson will further stoke the rumours that Barry will be recalled in the upcoming transfer window.
However, if the Iceland under-21 international can settle quickly into his new surroundings, he could turn out to be a star in the second half of the campaign. He will have a couple of weeks to prepare himself for the demands of the EFL with the deal expected to be completed when the transfer window officially opens next month.