According to recent media reports, soon-to-be former Walsall midfielder Rory Holden is training with former Saddlers boss Darrell Clarke's Port Vale ahead of a potential summer switch to Stoke-on-Trent.
Holden, who missed the whole of the 2021/22 campaign through injury, is set to reach the end of his Walsall contract over the next few days and, despite being invited back to Essington for pre-season, looks to have opted to leave for pastures new.
Holden, who missed the whole of the 2021/22 campaign through injury, is set to reach the end of his Walsall contract over the next few days and, despite being invited back to Essington for pre-season, looks to have opted to leave for pastures new.
24-year-old Holden enjoyed two spells in WS1, with the then Bristol City man initially signing on loan ahead of a permanent switch in the summer of 2020.
Rory managed sixty-two first-team appearances for the club but suffered a series of injury setbacks which has seen him miss much of the last eighteen months, including undergoing two surgeries in a bid to return to fitness.
Aside from games in training, Rory's final Saddlers appearance came in a 1-0 victory over Tranmere Rovers in April 2021.
According to reports initially published by the Express & Star, Vale have offered Holden medical help – funding specialist assistance among other measures – as he makes a gradual recovery from his long-term absence.
Neither Walsall nor Port Vale have offered any comment on Rory's current status, but we will publish any news when it is made available.
