Three new players officially joined Altrincham this week. All of them have accepted the terms for The Robins until the end of this season.
Attacker Yassine Toure (19), midfielder Mikey Stone (21), and full-back Eddy Jones (24) have been announced as new signings. But only Stone and Jones will be included in the first team immediately, while Toure, son of Manchester City legend Kolo Toure, will be loaned out to a Northern Premier League West side to get more minutes.
Stone and Toure impressed manager Neil Gibson after training at Altrincham’s Egerton training ground for the past couple of months, while Jones last played for Alty before his contract expired in June and got re-signed.
“Mikey is a really exciting talent. He is a young lad with bundles of enthusiasm and energy that he channels into a high work-rate,” said Gibson about the Wythenshawe local boy.
“He is a high-intensity player who can operate in multiple positions as an attacking option in wide areas and centrally.
“He has a fantastic attitude and has trained really well with us after his disappointment up in Scotland with Hamilton (Academicals), when a transfer embargo left him looking for a club with the season already underway.”
READ MORE: Late goals secured Altrincham’s epic comeback over Scunthorpe
The gaffer also spoke highly of Toure, who spent some time in the academies of Celtic and Leicester City and gained senior experience with Wrexham reserve team as a wide attacker.
“Yassine also has a lot of potential. He has a huge amount of physical prowess. He is very strong, and, in one-on-one duels, he is quick, pacey,” said Gibson.
“There is an area of his game that needs tidying up and he needs to learn men’s football, so we are looking to give him some game time with other clubs, be it loan or dual registration. We will work with him over the next few months to try to improve him to a point where he can compete for a first-team place.
READ MORE: Rochdale secure vital three points in tight title battle
“He is still only young, and he has a good pedigree in terms of his time at Wrexham. His attitude in training has been fantastic. He has worked really hard, and he looks like someone who, over the next six to 12 months, we could mould into a good National League footballer.”
Eddy’s case is different from the first two. He suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury in February, which forced him out for the rest of the season. Despite his contract being over in June, Alty kept supervising his recovery programme and took him back when he was fit.
“Eddy is well known to everyone associated with the club, and I am really pleased he has re-signed for us. The medical department have done a great job in managing his rehab, and he has been training with us to get back to full fitness,” said the manager.
“There was interest in him from other clubs in the National League once he got fit again, but I felt it was a really good opportunity for us to offer him a deal until the end of the season, because the quality he has will complement the group of players we have here.”
READ MORE: Bury FC appoints their manager as Head of Football Operations
Got a story? Email us at editor@mancsport.com
For more Altrincham news, click here.
