Premier League loanee gets rave reviews from fans after lighting up League Two on debut

Never fall in love with a loan player. It’s football’s golden rule but Bristol Rovers fans might be about to do it – again.

In 2022, future England international Elliot Anderson rocked up at the Memorial Stadium and had fans running out of plaudits.

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Then-manager Joey Barton described the midfielder in glowing terms, likening him to one of the greats of the game.

“I’ve been listening to Bill Shankly tapes a lot today,” he told BristolLive at the time.

“He talked a lot about a 19-year-old Diego Maradona and how he slows down in the penalty area, exactly like Elliot Anderson does. (He is) such a talent.”

He added: “Elliot has been brilliant for us from the first day we brought him in. I would have paid to watch him tonight – he was that good. He is growing into the shirt and his goal capped an outstanding performance.

“Elliot is a huge talent. He excites you and tonight he showed a different gear to be the stand-out player on the pitch.”

Now, after a stunning debut, Tottenham’s Yusuf Akhamrich might be about to fall into the same category.

He joined the Pirates on January 22 and the 20-year-old got off to the perfect start to life in Bristol.

The strugglers won a vital relegation six-pointer with Newport County 3-0, and Akhamrich scored their opening two goals.

His first saw the midfielder latch onto a poor clearance before driving into a central area and unleashing a left-foot strike into the net from 25 yards.

He added a second 18 minutes later, taking down a brilliant diagonal into the box before slotting past Jordan Wright.

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Akhamrich almost got a third too but saw another long range shot palmed away by Wright before exiting the game in the 82nd minute.

And Fabrizio Cavegn put the cherry on top of the win – their second in nine – as they look to fire themselves out of the relegation zone.

“I’m not trying to overreact but I think Yusuf Akhamrich is the second coming of Elliot Anderson,” one fan tweeted.

Another added: “Goes without saying the comparisons of Akhamrich and Anderson will happen now, but enjoy him while he’s here. He won’t stay in L2 for long, superb!”

A third said: “Give Yusuf Akhamrich the keys to the city.”

Akhamrich hasn’t just made his mark in this game though.

The talented youngster had already played against Rovers in a 4-4 draw in the Vertu Trophy while playing for Tottenham’s Under-21s.

Meanwhile, Evans has been keeping tabs on the youngster for some time.

After signing the player, he said: “I first watched him last year, retained him in my notes for the future and I made my move last week to get him here, but we had to be patient for the loan to be ticked off by the manager at Spurs.

“He is a young lad with a lot of potential and has already shown at the Mem this season what he can offer.”

And if he can fire Bristol Rovers to safety it’s almost certain he’ll go down in the history books just like Nottingham Forest and England star Anderson.