Port Vale boss John Askey has revealed young Nottingham Forest defender Adam Crookes is on his list of targets should he remain in charge at Vale Park beyond the end of the season, and has tipped the 21-year-old to play at a higher level.
The former Macclesfield and Shrewsbury Town boss took charge of his boyhood club in February and has been successful in steering them clear of relegation from the Football League.
His youthful side, including on-loan Aston Villa starlet - and Crookes' defensive sidekick - Mitch Clark, were at one stage just three points clear of the drop, but have now built a seven points buffer between themselves and Notts County.
Askey's long-term future is yet to be confirmed, but that hasn't stopped him putting together a shortlist of summer targets which, according to the Stoke Sentinel, starts with Crookes, who is approaching the end of his loan in Staffordshire.
The Reds centre-back has not missed a minute under his new manager, and while not being entirely faultless in his performances, he has been a key figure in Vale's survival.
“You don’t want too many young players in your squad unless you have real quality," said Askey.
"Even with Mitch and Crookes, we have seen games where they have made mistakes.
“You don’t want players making too many mistakes, but I think those two have got good attitudes and have potential to go higher.
“That is what you want from your younger players - people who have quality and a great chance of playing higher, whether that is with us or you get a transfer fee for them.”
Nottinghamshire Live revealed back in April that Crookes is set for crunch talks at the Nigel Doughty Academy, with the youngster out of contract this summer.
