Dario Gradi says the scouting ability of Neil Baker remains a vital part of life at Crewe Alexandra after again backing his assistant's judgement to sign young striker Danny Gardner this week.

Baker was again fundamental in watching and recommending the former Celtic youngster to the club and having brought the likes of Luke Varney, Steve Jones and Tom Pope from the non-league scene before, Gradi knows he is can trust Baker's decision making.

Of course, there is a risk with all transfers but a club like Crewe Alexandra can sometimes offer raw talent a bit more time to develop here than at other clubs. It took nearly three years for Varney to establish himself as a first-team regular and Jonah struggled to make any sort of impact after arriving from Leigh RMI. He was later loaned out to Rochdale but later became a full Northern Ireland International.

Dario is pleased to have Baker back working alongside him and says that the former Leek Town man's knowledge of the game and players is vital to us recruiting some more untapped gems.

"Neil loves his football and is a real football man. People say I'm a football man, but I'm not a football man like he is, ' says Dario. 

"He goes out on a evening and watches non-league football with 50 other spectators. That isn't my idea of an evening out but he does it and usually enjoys it. He knows his players and has great contacts in the game.

"If he isn't out there coaching then he is usually on his phone and someone like Neil has made a great contribution to the success of this football club.

"He is someone who can make a decision on a player fairly quickly. He is a decisive like that and he usually gets them right. There was one in the summer, who is now doing well at Rochdale that he recommended to both Gudjon and myself.

"We didn't go with it and I should have known better when Neil says he need to sign this one."