Michael Skubala has named the player he feels is the best midfielder in the league ahead of our trip to Luton Town.
However, it isn’t one of the Hatters’ players, but one of our own. Conor McGrandles saw an extension in his contract triggered this week, ensuring he will be an Imps for another season. It will be the sixth campaign he’s kicked a ball for the Imps, and takes him hurtling towards 200 senior City appearances.
Michael paid tribute to the former Falkirk and Norwich City midfielder, labelling him as the best on the league at present.
“Conor McGrandles is, for me, the best midfielder in the league at the moment,” he claimed during his pre-match interview.
“I feel like if you take him out of the Lincoln City side, the machine doesn’t work as well as oiled as it is. He’s just smart. You know, he’s just a smart footballer. The way he lands on things, the way he cleans the game up for us.
“I think playing him a little bit lower this season has really brought his experience to the forefront as well. He’s a dream to work with every day.”
One of the defining characteristics of this Lincoln side is hard work, hard running and constant fighting. In McGrandles, who cost Norwich £1m when he moved from Scotland, we have a player with an unbelievable engine.
It’s not just what he does on the field, as Michael explained, but his attitude across the spectrum
“(He’s) another one that sets the standards, another one but knows the game, knows how to win, has a winning mentality. But his quality has been up there with the best in this league.
“So I think he’s, for me, the best midfielder in the league at the moment.”
Do the numbers back that up? Well, as we discussed in our piece yesterday, numbers are not everything, but Wyscout does back up Michael’s claim that he is one of the best. He has ranked top ten all season for defensive midfielders in their index, and that’s based purely on the field, not taking into account running stats or driving standards.
Few Imps fans would argue against him being one of the best, and at present, he could well get Player of the Season, an accolade you gave him in 2020/21, when he beat Jorge Grant and Brennan Johnson to the Stacey West Player of the Season.