Ben out to live up to expectations
NEW Accrington Stanley signing Ben Barclay says the team have big expectations to perform this season after he completed his transfer to the club.
The 22-year-old arrives from Premier League side Brighton, and has signed a one-year deal with Stanley after a successful trial period. He also spent time on loan with Notts County last season, but is now excited for the future after joining the Reds.
“As a team I think we’ve got big expectations in terms of like wanting to come and perform and do well in front of the fans and give it our best efforts,” he told the club’s official website.
“On a personal note just to come and play as many games as I can and do as well as I can. I’ve been in the last couple of weeks, training with the boys and playing in a couple of games and that. I’m happy to finally get it all sorted and done and get ready for the season.
“In terms of playing for Notts County last season, I didn’t play a lot of games but I played some games in men’s football for the first time.
“We were in a relegation battle so obviously I’ve learnt from that, something new which I’ve never had to deal with before so that was good.”
Barclay is expected to feature in the Stanley side this weekend when Accrington continue their pre-season preparations, with the team taking on Welsh Premier League side Bala Town at Maes Tegid.
Meanwhile, defender Zehn Mohammed has today joined Southport on a youth loan until January 2020.
The 19-year-old signed his first professional contract with the club in May 2017 as he put pen to paper on a two-year deal, with the club choosing to exercise a one-year extension to his contract this summer.
Mohammed’s only senior appearance for Stanley came in the 4-2 defeat to Bury in the EFL Trophy in January 2019.
The Blackburn-born centre-back, who attended Queen Elizabeth’s Grammar School, was playing Sunday league football for Mill Hill before he had a trial with Stanley and signed at Under-16 level.