Gerard Lyttle backing 'one we've had our eyes on for a while' to light up Irish League after Cliftonville transfer
Cliftonville assistant manager Gerard Lyttle believes Liam McStravick can light up the Irish League after returning to Solitude – and has also opened up on the difficulties faced by the Reds to recruit talent amidst competition from their full-time rivals.
McStravick came through the youth ranks at Cliftonville before joining Linfield and sealing a switch to Scottish outfit Airdrie, where he made 50 league appearances.
The 21-year-old marked Jim Magilton’s second piece of January transfer business after the Reds paid an undisclosed fee to secure his services.
Northern Ireland U21 international McStravick is highly-rated and provides further attacking firepower as Cliftonville look to compete across fronts – their Irish Cup campaign begins on Saturday when the 2023/24 champions host Dundela.
Lyttle believes their new recruit has the potential to quickly become a fan favourite and revealed McStravick has been a long-term target.
"We’re really excited to have him,“ he said. “I have known Liam a lifetime.
"He came through our academy, went to Linfield and done really well and got his move to Airdrie.
"To be honest with you, I'm surprised that he’s coming back – not in a bad way because I think highly of him and a lot of people do in terms of his ability.
"He's the type of kid that gets fans off their seats. He’s exciting to watch, gets about the pitch, he's very intelligent and I think he'll fit in to how we go about our business in terms of our style of play.
“He's a great character. As I say, I've known him a lifetime, I know his family. He's one that we've had our eyes on for a while and I'm absolutely delighted that the club's got it done.”
Cliftonville are battling for top talent against four full-time Premiership teams, which has made Magilton and Lyttle’s job of attracting players to Solitude more difficult.
The Reds’ management team have had conversations with numerous stars who have ultimately opted to join one of their full-time rivals – a call which Lyttle fully understands given the short span of a career in football.
Cliftonville continue to cast their net far and wide in search of reinforcements for not only January, but also long-term.
"It's difficult – I'm not going to lie about it, it's really difficult for us,” added Lyttle. “Every player that's gone to any full-time club here, I would say we've spoke to them before or during.
"We understand players want to play full-time football. It's a short-lived career as well. Sometimes they need to get the best move.
"Any players that we bring in, we've done our homework on. We've obviously looked at the profile of them in terms of how they fit into our system and how we play, the club ethos and all that.
"It probably helps us in a way too that we're not just spending the club's money for the sake of it and going ‘he's available, we'll bring him in’. It's a wee bit tougher, but it's better for us as well.”