Notts County must hope Sunderland loan doesn't suffer same fate as relegation season import | OneFootball

Notts County will hope Sunderland loanee Zak Johnson can avoid the same fate as Ben Barclay, who struggled during their 2019 relegation season.

Notts County will hope that Sunderland loanee Zak Johnson can avoid the same fate that Ben Barclay suffered during the 2018-19 season.

Barclay joined the Magpies on a loan deal from Brighton and Hove Albion during the January transfer window, as part of a key rebuild to strengthen the squad midway through their relegation battle.

The Seagulls loanee struggled at Meadow Lane and ultimately missed the final two games of the season as Notts succumbed to relegation into non-league for the first time in their history.

The club will be hoping that the Black Cats man doesn’t fall to a similar fate during his time in Nottingham.

Ben Barclay struggled at Notts

When Barclay arrived at Meadow Lane in January 2019, it was his first real taste of senior men’s football.

The young centre back had made a sole appearance for his parent club in the EFL Cup, and had featured in the EFL Trophy for the academy. Aside from that, he had played all his football at youth level.

At the time when Barclay made the switch to Notts, the club were rooted to the bottom of the entire Football League pyramid, a situation which is far from ideal for a young player’s first loan move.

Neal Ardley’s side earned themselves a lifeline at the start of February when back-to-back wins against promotion chasers Forest Green Rovers and local rivals Mansfield Town halted a run of eight league games without a win.

Despite showing promising signs in those two victories, the Magpies were unable to build on those foundations, and a subsequent run of just two wins from their next 12 league games left them in a perilous position with the end of the season looming.

Barclay netted his first ever professional goal on Good Friday, but it counted for little more than a stoppage-time consolation in a home defeat to MK Dons – the 11th game of that 12-match spell.

On Easter Monday, with Notts level at 1-1 away at Crawley Town and pushing strongly for a winner, Barclay was sent off for a rash, two-footed lunge on Dannie Bulman.

Ardley’s men went on to take a point home from Sussex, but the fanbase felt seriously let down by Barclay, who many felt had cost them the opportunity to win the game against their fellow strugglers.

Following that dismissal, the then 22-year-old was forced to watch the remaining two fixtures from the stands.

Notts defeated Grimsby at Meadow Lane in the campaign’s penultimate weekend, but fell to a gut-wrenching defeat, and with it relegation, at Swindon the following Saturday.

Relegation from the Football League for the first time in the club’s history capped off what had been a dismal loan spell for Barclay.

The early signs from Zak Johnson are much more positive

While Notts’ 2019 relegation was far from solely Barclay’s fault, his loan spell was symptomatic of a campaign in which the entire club made a string of awful decisions, that ultimately cost them dearly.

The Magpies will be desperately hoping that a similar fate doesn’t befall current loanee Johnson. Although there is little evidence to go off so far, the initial signs suggest that the Sunderland youngster can have a positive impact at Meadow Lane.

The 20-year-old recently came off the bench to debut in the 2-1 home victory over Carlisle United and slotted into Stuart Maynard’s back three with ease.

The youngster proved himself to be an extremely steady defender and also looked comfortable with the ball at his feet, something which is vital if a player is to be a success in Notts’ system.

Johnson was brought in on loan early in the January window as a result of injuries to Lewis Macari and Lucas Ness. Rod McDonald has provided adequate cover on the right side of the defence in recent weeks, meaning Johnson may not get as much football as he would perhaps have first expected.

However, given the way the promotion race is shaping up in League Two, every game for Notts will be vital, meaning that as and when he does come into the side, there will be pressure to perform.

And, while the club are now in a completely different position to the one they faced in 2019, if Johnson can avoid similar struggles to the ones experienced by Barclay, Maynard and the board will be very satisfied with the deal to bring him in.