D3D4 Port Vale correspondent Alex Bettany reviews the pre-season and looks at the positive start the Valiants have made to the 2018/19 season…

Port Vale Pre-Season Review

Port Vale fans will be hoping for a vast improvement on last season’s final league standings, when the Valiants finished 21^st in League Two and only one point above the drop into non league.

It’s been a busy off-season for manager Neil Aspin, who joined the Staffordshire side last October, and he will be desperate to impress having been given the chance to build his own squad.

Transfer Business

Vale have had a mass turnover of playing staff in the last few seasons, with previous managers Bruno Ribiero and Michael Brown seemingly opting for a ‘quantity over quality’ approach to transfers.

However Aspin stated that he wanted to narrow the squad down to around 25 players, and he started off by releasing 10 and transfer listing a further four from last year’s side.

Of those four, Callum Howe found a move to Harrogate whilst Rob Lainton has gone on a season long loan to Wrexham.

Those outgoings have allowed ‘Aspo’ to bring in his own players, and he wasted no time in sorting out many of last season’s problem positions.

LISTEN HERE: Round up of all the action from the opening weekend.

Vale’s inconsistency in goal – having fielded five different ‘keepers over the course of the season – was a big reason for why they dropped so many points, and the capture of Scott Brown from League One bound Wycombe is seen as a real coup for the club.

The defence was also an issue. Despite containing some promising young players, there was a severe lack of experience that perhaps led to poor game management and decision making at times.

Aspin made an experienced central defender one of his top priorities, and succeeded by bringing in Leon Legge from Cambridge – who he wil`l hope can be a calming influence in a back four that contains two youth graduates and a converted winger at left back.

In front of them, Aspin moved quickly to bring more mobility into his midfield area.

Last season’s midfield three had a combined age of over 100, and whilst certain players such as Anthony Kay did well, Vale fans will be glad to see more energy in the form of Carlisle’s Luke Joyce and Aldershot’s player-of-the-year ‘Manny’ Oyeleke.

Further up the pitch, the Vale have added Peterborough forward Ricky Miller to partner Tom Pope in attack.

Miller didn’t have the best of breaks in the Football League with Posh, but if he can rediscover the sort of form that saw him score 45 goals in 46 appearances for Dover then a formidable partnership with Pope could be on the cards.

Furthermore, the club moved to bring back Louis Dodds from Chesterfield on loan.

The attacking midfielder scored 51 goals in 289 appearances in his previous eight-year stay in Burslem, and if he can be as influential as he has the ability to be then he will be a top acquisition in this league.

Aspin has also dipped into non league and beyond to attempt to uncover some hidden gems.

Along with Oyeleke and Luke Hannant – who joined from Gateshead in January – local winger Brendon Daniels joined after a prolific few years with in non-league following his release by Crewe, whilst Connell Rawlinson has impressed at centre half following a move from Welsh side TNS.

Overall, the transfer business has been much more positive from Aspin than it has been in previous years. There seems to be a nice blend of experience and non-league gambles. Perhaps the squad is lacking in a couple of out-and-out wingers, but that depends on the system the manager decides to play.

However after another influx of players Vale fans will be hoping they can gel pretty quickly.

Transfers: Scott Brown (Wycombe, free), Luke Joyce (Carlisle, free), Leon Legge (Cambridge, free), Manny Oyeleke (Aldershot, free), Ricky Miller (Peterborough, undisclosed), Connell Rawlinson (TNS, free), Scott Quigley (Blackpool, loan), Idris Kanu (Peterborough, loan), Louis Dodds (Chesterfield, loan), Theo Vassell (Gateshead, free), Tom Conlon (Stevenage, free), Brendon Daniels (Alfreton, free).

Pre-season Games

Neil Aspin booked in a host of friendlies at Vale Park against higher league opposition, in the hope that his new-look side can get used to the large pitch in Burslem.

Draws seemed to be the theme of most of Vale’s pre-season friendlies – but Aspin won’t be too fussed at the results as he experimented with new formations and systems.

It came as no real surprise to Vale fans to see him try out a back three, or five with wing backs – these were set-ups Aspin preferred whilst with Halifax and Gateshead previously.

What did raise a few eyebrows, however, was the attempt to play Cristian Montano as part of the central three.

Montano was successfully converted from a winger into a full back last season, but perhaps the trial of him in the ‘Kyle Walker’ role was a step too far.

Whilst Walker had some success for England in that position at this summer’s World Cup, he did at least possess the basic defensive training through youth levels that the Vale speedster lacks.

Therefore it would be a shock if Montano actually lined up there – not least because it would take away the attacking side of his game which could prove so important in supplying Tom Pope and Ricky Miller up front.

But it has certainly been positive to see Aspin try out a variety of different systems.

Pre-Season Prediction

LISTEN HERE: League Two 2018/19 Preivew

The Vale surely can’t do much worse than the 21^st placed finish they mustered last season. Problematic positions seem to have been targeted and sorted early on which has been a massive boost for most fans.

Although there is perhaps a question mark over the teams creative spark, Aspin will hopefully have the team more organised in defence. For that reason I can’t see the Valiants in the same position as they found themselves in last time around.

A mid-table finish – around 10^th to 14^th – is probably the most likely outcome with this current squad.

Consolidation and a consistency to build on going into the following season would be gratefully received by most fans after what has gone on at the club over the past three seasons.

As for the rest of the league, I can see MK Dons making an immediate return to League One, along with Notts County, Lincoln, and possibly Crawley as a surprise package joining them.

However I think Macclesfield, Stevenage, Grimsby and Morecambe will struggle and make up the bottom end of the football league in one way or another.

That being said, who would have had Accrington down as the league’s victors last season?

Vale New Boys Shine in Opening Day Win

Port Vales 2018-19 campaign couldn’t have got off to a better start as they comfortably beat Cambridge United on the opening day.

Goals from Tom Pope after new boy Ricky Millers opener saw the Staffordshire side avenge the 5-0 defeat by Cambridge in their last competitive match back in May.

But it was the manner in which they earned the win which will have pleased the fans along with manager Neil Aspin.

After a nervy first 25 minutes from both sides, Vale managed to dictate the game once they managed to get the ball down on the floor.

That came after Miller started to influence the game with his hunger and eagerness to get on the ball.

And the former Peterborough man got his rewards just before the break by converting a wonderful free-kick that he himself had won following some good link-up play with David Worrall on a counter attack.

However it wasn’t just Miller of the new additions that left an impression on the Vale faithful.

Manny Oyeleke looked powerful yet calm, whilst his central midfield partner Luke Joyce controlled the play at times and protected the back four well.

That central partnership looked much improved compared to the previous season, which had often contained much heart but very little else.

Meanwhile Scott Brown appeared to be a big presence in goal, and pulled off a fine save from United striker Azeez in the 58^th minute.

And the fifth debutant, Connell Rawlinson, made the step up from the Welsh Premier League seem like a breeze as he put in a confident performance at centre half to help Vale earn their first clean sheet of the season.

It was a win which left many fans around the ground with cause for optimism – however Vale fans know by now not to get carried away by opening day results.

The Valiants haven’t lost on the first game of the season for 14 years after Saturdays win, but that meant very little after last year’s opening day win away at Crawley led to a 21^st place finish in English Football’s fourth tier.

There’s still a hell of a long way to go, but if the team can keep the same determination, organisation, and style of play going forward then who knows what the season might bring.