Town chief urges Hatters to watch out for 'potent ' Pilgrims threat Tolaj
Attacker has three goals in five games for Argyle
Hatters Matt Bloomfield has warned his players to watch out for the attacking threat that a ‘potent’ striker Lorent Tolaj possesses for today’s opponents Plymouth Argyle.
The 24-year-old, who was born in Switzerland, headed to England in 2018 as he joined Premier League side Brighton & Hove Albion as a teenager. While with the Seagulls, he had loan spells at Cambridge United, Salford City and Dundee, before leaving permanently to sign for National League outfit Aldershot in July 2023. Scoring 23 goals in a season for the Shots saw him earn a move to Port Vale last summer where he found the net 16 more times to set another transfer up the football echelon, heading to Home Park in August for a fee reported to be just over £1m.
It took him three games to get up and running in his new surroundings, as he bagged a brace in the 2-0 EFL Trophy victory over Cheltenham Town and then was on target in the 4-2 League One victory over Stockport County last weekend to make it three goals in five outings for Argyle. Asked which players Town needed to be wary of during this afternoon’s contest at Kenilworth Road, Bloomfield said: “Caleb Watts is a really good player, Tolaj we know as I saw him at Aldershot and went on to Port Vale.
"He’s climbing the leagues and looks like a real potent threat so they’ve got players who can hurt us, we saw that. Shots from outside the box last weekend they scored two so they've got plenty of players that can offer a real threat, They've got a nice athletic profile about them, they’re a good team that’s growing and improving week by week as well so it’s a tough test for us.
“Like ourselves, there was a big turnover in the summer so Tom’s (Cleverley, manager) trying to get his group together and settling them down into a system and a formation and a way of playing that he believes in, but also integrating a lot of new players. They beat Stockport last weekend and we know Stockport are a real strong team in this league, so it will be a real stern test for us. They’ve got some real good players and we have to be ready.”
Tolaj was signed by Greens boss Cleverley, who himself is new to the club, having spent the last 12 months in charge of Town’s arch enemies Watford, lasting longer than most other Hornets managers have, 12 months in fact, sacked in May of this year. Having also played for the Hornets, the ex-England international will no doubt get something of a vociferous welcome to Kenilworth Road this afternoon, although Bloomfield clearly has plenty of respect for him, adding: “I’m sure he will (get a reception). Tom’s a good guy, obviously he has massive history in the game, played at such an elite level, a very good coach.
"I like him, I think he’s a good guy, but it’ll be a good atmosphere on Saturday. I really want our fans to get behind us, I know they will and I hope we can put on a show that inspires them as well. I think he carries himself really well whenever we’ve encountered each other in the past, there’s not loads of times, but he carries himself with dignity. He seems like a real good guy, did a very good job at Watford, found himself unlucky to be out of a job there and picked up the reins at Plymouth. He’s someone I think highly of and we’re looking forward to testing ourselves against his team on Saturday.”