Lincoln City and Crawley Town highs haven't been matched at Notts County yet | OneFootball

Kellan Gordon has struggled to hit the highs that he experienced with Lincoln and Crawley at Notts.

Kellan Gordon produced another disappointing performance in Notts County’s 3-2 defeat away at Walsall on Tuesday night.

Stuart Maynard’s side have been ravaged by injuries of late and have taken a total of just 13 points from their last 10 games in League Two.

Tuesday night saw Matty Platt absent, after limping off in Saturday’s FA Cup defeat to Peterborough, as well as George Abbott, who was visibly exhausted after playing all 99 minutes in Cambridgeshire. That duo added to a growing injury list that already includes Dan Crowley, Jodi Jones, Curtis Edwards and Conor Grant.

With the Magpies’ squad stretched to the bare bones, emphasis has been placed on the surviving members of the squad to step up and help drag the side through a difficult spell and, unfortunately, Gordon’s displays have continued to underwhelm.

Gordon’s form is a cause for concern

With games coming thick and fast throughout the December period, it’s imperative Notts get more from the likes of Gordon.

The former Mansfield man was part of a particularly impressive wing-back duo for Crawley Town last season, alongside Nick Tsaroulla. Gordon joined Crawley for an undisclosed fee in January 2023, and made 36 appearances in the league last season as Scott Lindsey's men propelled themselves from relegation favourites all the way to promotion at Wembley.

He finished the 23/24 season with one goal and one assist to his name and played 65 minutes of the play-off final as the Reds kept a clean sheet to defeat Crewe 2-0 and secure promotion.

Notts picked up both in the summer, but unlike Tsaroulla, Gordon has struggled to find a regular place in the side.

The wing-back has started just six league games for Maynard’s men so far and when he has got on the pitch, he’s cut a frustrated figure at times.

He has a solitary assist to his name so far, to sit alongside the goal he scored in the Vertu Trophy win at Burton Albion. But, after being a big part of a promotion winning team last term, it’s fair to say expectations for him were higher than what’s being shown at the minute.

Since losing Jodi Jones, Notts have undoubtedly become less dynamic in the wide areas, and it’s limiting their creativity at the minute.

Gordon has the height and athleticism to be a very successful wing-back at League Two level, but instead he’s not performing well enough to even get a start ahead of some more makeshift options.

The former Derby academy product’s struggles have seen Notts opt for both Sam Austin and George Abbott ahead of him at times this season, even though both are better suited to central midfield roles.

This issue was highlighted once again on Tuesday night, when Maynard handed youngster Madou Cisse his first ever EFL start, instead of his summer signing.

Gordon needs to adapt his game to fit Notts’ style

Gordon’s past performances at this level serve up enough evidence to suggest that he’s more than capable as a League Two wing-back.

His promotion with Crawley last term was already the second of his career, having also been part of Danny Cowley’s Lincoln squad that won the title back in 2018-19. The Burton-born wing-back only had a short loan spell with the Imps at the start of that campaign, but he made a big impact, scoring twice in his six league appearances, before returning to his parent club, Derby.

Gordon is very much a different style to Notts' other main wing-back options in Jones and Tsaroulla. He tends to favour an early cross into the box and seems less confident squaring up his man and driving to the byline.

While variation in a squad can be a very valuable thing, his style simply isn’t working for Notts at present.

Flashing early balls into the box tends to be more effective for teams who sit deep and then throw bodies forward on the counter-attack, as you consistently have runners from deep who are breaking into the box.

However, in Notts’ possession system, the emphasis is far more on the wingers beating a man and cutting the ball back. As, when Notts have the ball around the edge of an opposition box, it tends to be in a situation where several defenders are back behind the ball, rather than the transitional situations he experienced a little more at Crawley.

Gordon certainly has the pace and strength required to adapt and start attempting to beat his man a little more often, but his performances must improve quickly, or Notts