Cameron Borthwick-Jackson would have hoped that his Tranmere Rovers loan move could have been the springboard to get his career back on track.
But the 22-year-old has played just twice for the League One outfit and only been on the pitch for a total of 96 minutes, since joining on a season-long move on September’s transfer deadline day.
With academy full-backs Brandon Williams and Ethan Laird being integrated into the first team, Borthwick-Jackson’s fall from grace has been remarkable. He use to be the promising talent at club, now he is the forgotten man.
The left-back spent last season on loan in League One with Scunthorpe United, scoring twice in 29 league appearances
He has played 14 times for United but last featured for the Premier League side in May 2016. He also had a trial spell with Eredivisie side Heerenveen in the summer.
Speaking about his move in September on the Tranmere Rovers website, Borthwick-Jackson said: “I’m delighted and I can’t wait to get started.
“I think it’s a case of me getting back to my best and showcasing what I can do to help Tranmere finish as high up the league table as possible.
“The manager was keen, and he wanted me. I’m looking forward to working with him and that’s half the battle to have a manager like that. He said he knows my quality and he wants me to get back enjoying my football.”
The move to Prenton Park is the fourth loan spell of Borthwick-Jackson’s career, after previous underwhelming periods at Wolves, Leeds and Scunthorpe.
How far into the wilderness will he go?
Could Borthwick-Jackson already be considering calling an end to his Tranmere spell with him being restricted to a place on the bench week in week out.
It would make sense for him to reassess his position in January, if his playing situation hasn’t improved, he may have to terminate his loan move and seek another spell with another club.
It’s not like Tranmere are flying and challenging for promotion, they currently sit 19th in the table, and yet Borthwick-Jackson who has experience playing in the Champions League, is not deemed an automatic starter.
Cameron Borthwick-Jackson’s latest loan move could prove to be his last temporary move away from Old Trafford with his contract due to expire next summer.
Unless something drastically changes, Borthwick-Jackson will be a free agent in the summer and will be looking for a new club.
The worry is a career that initally brought so much promise could just fizzle out and he goes into obscurity.
If he is struggling to get a game in League One, what level will he have to drop too to rebuild himself back up and get valuable playing time.
Will he have to go down to League Two or could he even drop out of the Football League? Time will tell, but at the age of 22, Borthwick-Jackson still has enough time to turn his career around.
The question is, does he have the desire?
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