Tranmere Rovers Season Preview 2021/22: Mellon is back

Tranmere’s surreal 2020/21 campaign ended in playoff heartbreak following the outrageous conclusion to the previous season. Now with Micky Mellon back in the dugout they can get to that unfinished business.

Micky Mellon and his side were on a roll when COVID hit in 2019/20. The club had started to look like they were going to stay up only for the EFL to pull the rug from beneath them and finish the season using a point per game model.

They spent last season trying to recover with Mike Jackson and then Keith Hill given the sack only for Mellon to return this summer. Hill had managed to secure Tranmere a playoff spot but his increasingly erratic press conferences and struggles to get the team performing meant Mark Palios pulled the plug in hope it would boost them back into League One.

It didn’t happen but they are in good shape to go again in 2021/22. Mellon has brought in some new faces as he attempts to mould a squad in his image and having fans back is key to their financial stability.

Prenton Park should once again be bouncing and they will be looking forward to seeing what sort of team they have managed to pull together over the summer. On paper, it looks to have a nice balance of experienced pros, players in the prime and academy graduates which should see the club fighting at the right end of the table again.

The Squad

Tranmere have been busy in the transfer market this summer and they needed to be after seeing some key players leave. Manny Monthe has joined Walsall and Danny Lloyd was snapped up by Gillingham. They have also waved goodbye to Kaiyne Woolery, Liam Ridhalgh and Paul Lewis, all of who featured heavily last season.

No doubt the biggest loss is that of James Vaughan, a striker whose goals they sorely missed when he was out injured. He’ll be hard to replace and right now, they look pretty light in attack. Paul Glatzel has signed on loan from Liverpool, the young forward has seen injury curb his progress with the Reds. Mani Dieseruvwe is the other forward option having last played for Salford City. He’s a target man who can score goals but is not of the same standard as Vaughan with his impact likely to be limited.

Mellon has recruited well elsewhere, however, with Ryan Watson joining from Northampton. The midfielder was arguably the Cobblers best player last season, and although that’s not saying much, eight goals in 39 league games is worth noting.

Josh Cogley is a player to keep an eye on. He arrives from Birmingham and looked excellent when on loan at Crawley before an Achilles injury put pay to his good progress. The pacey full-back will hopefully get the chance to impress at Prenton Park.

The defensive additions of Tom Davies and Nathaniel Knight-Percival are fine. The latter had a bounceback year with Morecambe last season, helping the Shrimps win promotion via the playoffs, knocking out Tranmere in the process. Joe Maguire comes in at left-back after leaving Accrington.

Liam Feeney has made his loan move permanent following a string of good displays while at Prenton Park last season. He is joined in the midfield by Sam Foley, fresh from a two-year stint in Scotland with St Mirren and Motherwell. Chris Merrie jumps on board from Wigan.

Newcomer to watch: Callum McManaman

Callum McManaman has never played lower than the Championship during his English playing career. That says it all. This is a superb capture for the Super White Army which gives them a play of real pedigree still in his pomp at the age of 30.

He was with Melbourne Victory in the A-League last season where he performed well and if he can stay healthy, injuries have been an issue for the midfielder over the years, then he will be a star in League Two next season.

Verdict

Tranmere are doing things right after a weird campaign last year. They have a manager they know and trust, they have a squad of talented players. If they can recruit a striker to adequately replace James Vaughan then they should contend in the automatic spots. The problem is ‘ifs’ don’t win you football matches so until they do bring some in, they may have to settle for a playoff battle.

words James Richards, D3D4 Football