Stockport County is delighted to confirm the signing of Aberdeen defender, Jayden Richardson, on loan for the 2023/24 campaign.
The 22-year-old, who already has 50 appearances to his name in League Two, returns to England for the first time since a successful loan spell at Notts County in 2021/22, having spent last season in the Scottish Premiership with The Dons.
A right-sided defender, Jayden initially came through the academy at Nottingham Forest, signing his first pro-contract with the then-Championship club in 2019, at the age of 18.
His first experience of senior football came just a few months later, when he joined League Two side Exeter City on a season-long loan deal. He went on to make 28 appearances for The Grecians that season, scoring twice, as Exeter finished 5th in a campaign that was cut short due to the Covid pandemic. When play did resume, he helped his side reach the League Two play-off final by scoring in their semi-final win over Colchester, before starting at Wembley in their defeat to Northampton Town.
Jayden headed back to League Two the following season, this time joining Forest Green Rovers in another year-long loan spell. For the second year running, he helped his side reach the League Two play-offs, appearing 36 times as Rovers finished sixth, before eventually being beaten in the semi-finals by Newport County.
Back at Forest for the 2021/22 season, having impressed during his time on loan, the highly-rated full-back made his debut for his hometown club in a Carabao Cup tie against Bradford City and went on to make four appearances for the first-team in the opening months of the campaign.
In December that season, Jayden made the short move to Notts County on an initial one-month loan deal – a move that was later extended until the end of the season.
He was an instant success at Meadow Lane, grabbing an assist on his debut in a 4-1 win against Southend United. Despite only being there for half a season, his performances across his 23 appearances saw him named in the National League Team of the Season, as Notts fell short in the play-offs after finishing 5th.
On the back of such a successful period, Richardson decided to make the move north of the border, signing a three-year-deal with Aberdeen. He made 24 appearances for the Scottish side last season, 19 of them in the league, as The Dons finished 3rd behind Celtic and Rangers.
A long term target for the club, we are delighted to welcome Jayden to Edgeley Park for the upcoming season.
Director of Football, Simon Wilson said:
“Jayden is high energy, right-sided player that will add great competition to that part of the pitch for us. We are fortunate to benefit from a change in circumstances at Aberdeen, who fought off competition to sign him 12 months ago. The loan gives us the chance to help Jayden rediscover the form that got him the move, and help our team with his performances. I’m sure our supporters will enjoy watching him in full flight.”
First-Team Manager, Dave Challinor said:
“I’m absolutely delighted to get a deal sorted for Jayden to join us. His profile is one that we only really have with Macca, in terms of a penetrator from the right-hand side. He has great power, pace and athleticism, and a real intent to run forward.
“His move north hasn’t quite worked out how he or Aberdeen would have hoped, after the impact he had at Notts County during our title winning season, but we hope now he has a platform to get back to his best football and show what he can do.
“This one’s been a long time in planning as he was someone who we discussed and tried to move on last season, but thankfully we’ve got it done now and we look forward to working with him, just as I’m sure you the fans will look forward to welcoming him.”
Hear Jayden’s first interview as a County player below:
