Ex-Ian Evatt favourite on the move as Blackpool begin search following Crystal Palace decision
Crystal Palace made the decision to recall Danny Imray from his season-long loan at Blackpool.
A former Ian Evatt favourite at Bolton Wanderers is on the move this month as Blackpool go in search of a new right-back.
Josh Dacres-Cogley enjoyed a brilliant two-and-a-half-year stint at the Bolton Community Stadium, with his best form coming under the now Blackpool boss.
The 29-year-old amassed 126 outings for the Whites following his 2023 arrival, which also included a play-off final finish in 2024.
However, the right-back’s time with Blackpool’s rivals came to a close on Thursday as he completed a switch to promotion hopefuls Stockport County on an 18-month deal.
Dacres-Cogley had been tipped with a Bolton exit earlier in the window after a frustrating start to the season, which saw him appear just 13 times in League One under Steven Schumacher.
It’s a player Evatt knows well, with the duo working together for more than 18 months following his switch from Tranmere in June 2023.
Blackpool confirmed the departure of Danny Imray, with Crystal Palace triggering a recall option in his season-long deal at Bloomfield Road.
The 22-year-old amassed 16 appearances on the Fylde Coast but missed more than two months of action after sustaining a knee injury in September.
Following his return at the beginning of December, though, the Eagles loanee thrived under Evatt, scoring two goals and provided two assists in his previous eight appearances.
But Blackpool now have a hole to fill with injuries and a suspension to James Husband potentially affecting plans to visit Conor Hourihane’s Barnsley this weekend.
Ian Evatt on Blackpool’s transfer latest
Blackpool have already strengthened this month, bringing in Kamarl Grant on loan from Millwall for the remainder of the campaign.
Emil Hansson and Imray have both been recalled by Birmingham City and Crystal Palace respectively - and represent the two departures from Bloomfield Road to date.
He said: “The January window is extremely difficult to recruit in, but when we finish the window, we want to be in a stronger position than when we started, so there’s nothing more to speak of yet but there’s lots of conversations taking place.
“It’s about what presents itself and what we feel is the right place for this football club. That’s what we’re trying to do, and we’ll see how this window evolves.
“It’s a really challenging window where things change by the hour, let alone over night. It’s a window where recruitment is difficult as it’s almost a domino effect at times. The Championship obviously comes before us, and there’s not much movement there.
“For us, it’s about being patient and making sure we’re making the best decisions for this football club.
“We know where we are light - we want to mitigate risks, and as long as we leave this window stronger than we started, then we’ll have enough quality to get where we need to get to.”
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