Shrewsbury Town: The inside track on new man Tom Sang
Tom Sang became Shrewsbury Town’s fifth summer arrival at the back end of last week - signing a two-year contract in Shropshire.
The 26-year-old is a versatile addition to Michael Appleton’s squad capable of playing at right wing-back, right centre-back, central midfield and even as a right winger.
Sang played 32 times at Vale Park last time out as they were promoted from League Two in second place, and Mike Baggaley, who works for The Valiant newsletter, says his strength is going forward.
“He played the most for Vale on the right side - usually at right wing-back,” he said. “Vale always played with wing-backs, so he mostly played there, but having said that, he also played on the right of a back three and in the centre midfield.
“He has also played on the right side of midfield as well. He is properly versatile.
“I would say, as a wing-back he is more of a midfielder playing wing-back rather than a full-back. I would have said his strengths are more going forward than defensively.
“Saying that he played in the back three in games when Vale thought they would have a lot of the ball and they wanted somebody good on the ball in the back three who could bring it out.”
Sang is a former Manchester United youth product, and he arrived at Vale Park back in 2023.
He will now compete with Luca Hoole for the right wing-back or full-back position, as well as Sam Clucas, Taylor Perry, Alex Gilliead and Harrison Biggins in the centre of Michael Appleton’s midfield.
Baggaley praised Sang’s crossing ability and said he always got the impression he was very professional around the training ground.
“He is good on the ball and he has loads of energy,” he continued. “He is a really dynamic sort of player, and he is very good at whipping in a cross on his right foot.
“He is one of those players who does not always have to beat the full-back. He can just bend a cross around them. He puts a load of whip on it too, so that is a real danger.
“He did pretty well last season. In his first season, Vale got relegated, and there were quite a few players who were part of that squad who struggled as the team did.
“He did very well for the team last year in League Two. He would get a good reception when he goes back to Vale.
“He is a good talker as well, really engaging and a nice fellow to chat too. I would imagine a very popular play within the squad.
“I never got the impression that when he was not in the squad he would sulk or moan or anything like that. I think he was a very good player to have round the place.”
Sang has been training with his new Shrewsbury team-mates at their Sundorne Castle training facility as they build up to their start to the fourth tier campaign which gets under way on August 2.
