Wrexham have sent striker Modou Faal on loan to Port Vale in the hope of seeing him develop in League One this season.
Wrexham have enjoyed a summer of spending as Phil Parkinson looks to compete in the Championship.
Callum Doyle is set to join Wrexham from Manchester City in an £8million raid, taking the summer outlay towards £30million.
Wrexham’s influx of summer signings means some players have moved on, with Paul Mullin’s loan switch to Wigan Athletic one of the most notable exits.
Mullin hasn’t been the only striker to leave Wrexham, as Steven Fletcher was released and Modou Faal completed a move to Port Vale.
- READ MORE: Wrexham’s confirmed transfers in 2025 summer window, incomings, outgoings and latest rumours
Wrexham’s Modou Faal shares Premier League inspiration
Faal joined Wrexham from West Bromwich Albion last summer, with Parkinson spotting potential in the giant striker’s game.
The Gambian struggled for playing time, though, and certainly needed a loan move after Wrexham’s promotion to the Championship.
Port Vale have taken Faal on loan for the season, and have already seen signs of his quality in the final third.
Faal scored the only goal as Port Vale knocked Blackpool out of the Carabao Cup last week, starting his Vale career in style.
Speaking to BBC Radio Stoke, Faal has admitted being inspired by Crystal Palace star Jean-Philippe Mateta.
Faal celebrated against Blackpool by high-kicking the corner flag, a celebration we have seen from Mateta on plenty of occasions at Palace.
The inspiration goes beyond the celebration, though, with Faal admitting that he loves to watch Mateta and sees him as an inspiration, praising his character as well as his quality.
“I’m actually getting a bit of stick for that in there, but it was just a little Mateta one,” said Faal.
“I watch him and I think he’s really good, I like his celebrations, and I think he’s a great character, so I just thought I’d do it as well.
“You can see that [modelling his game on Mateta], I need to go bald just like him!” he added.
Jean-Philippe Mateta a strong inspiration for Modou Faal
It’s easy to see why Faal is such a big fan of Mateta.
Mateta stands at 6ft 4in tall, while Faal is an inch taller than the Frenchman at 6ft 5in tall.
Faal may see similarities in their styles of play and will want to take aspects of Mateta’s game to make himself a Wrexham star down the line.
Mateta is now one of the Premier League’s top strikers with 36 goals in the last two seasons, but his journey took some twists and turns.
Lyon signed Mateta in 2016, but he barely featured for the Ligue 1 side and had to impress on loan at Le Havre to earn a move to Mainz.
Mateta impressed in Germany, but he then managed just 10 goals in his first 67 games for Palace.
Mateta had been written off by many, but he has now developed his game brilliantly and is a constant menace to Premier League defenders.
This just goes to show that development is not linear, and Faal need for loan moves away from Wrexham doesn’t mean he will never make the grade.
Faal just needs to keep working hard, keep taking the chances when they come his way and keep pushing to impress Parkinson ahead of his Wrexham return next summer.