BARROW AFC confirmed on Thursday that Port Vale midfielder David Worrall will be Pete Wild's first signing of the summer transfer window. 

The acquisition of Worrall is a transfer coup for the Bluebirds, who are bringing in the experienced creator off the back of their historic ninth-placed league finish last campaign.

Using WhoScored.com we took a look at what Worrall will bring to his new side as they look to make themselves promotion contenders in the 2023/24 League Two season.

To begin a staple of Worrall's game during his time at Port Vale was versatility.

Barrow's new signing has the ability to play in more advanced midfield roles and can operate effectively on the left and right sides of the midfield unit.

In addition Worrall has also been deployed in deeper wing-back roles for the Staffordshire-based outfit.

With this versatility, Worrall played a key role in Port Vale's playoff promotion campaign in 2021/22 in which he played 44 times.

In Vale's turbulent first season in League One, Worrall, a fan favourite in Burslem, made 39 appearances, including 31 starts, and recorded a goal and six assists.

Defensively, Worrall does have some effectiveness, with an average of 0.8 tackles and 0.6 interceptions per 90 minutes during the 22/23 season.

In context, these figures rank Worrall amongst Barrow's best, with more interceptions per 90 than Sam McClelland, Tom White, and Robbie Gotts. 

Where Worrall excels is going forward and this is reflected in his statistics.

During the 22/23 League One campaign for Port Vale, Worrall averaged 2.3 crosses per 90, with only Ben Whitfield coming close to this number for the Bluebirds, with 1.6.

Therefore players like Ged Garner and Josh Gordon will be left with no shortage of service from their new teammates.

Furthermore, Worrall also has the ability to play incisive passes, with an average of 1.9 per game during his final season at the Vale, again this is only nearly matched by Barrow's top assister of the 22/23 season, Ben Whitefield, who tops the Bluebirds charts with 1.7.

One key area of improvement for the Bluebirds in the 23/24 season has to be hitting the back of the net and now with the arrival of Worrall, the Barrow forwards will have no shortage of opportunities to do just that.