“Gorgeous” Karamoko Dembele is at last realizing his early promise, and Neil Critchley, the manager of Blackpool, is thrilled with what he is witnessing.

Despite his recent 21st birthday, the small winger appears to have had a remarkable career thus far. He first gained notoriety in 2016 when, at the age of THIRTEEN, he ran out for Celtic’s U20 team. However, he struggled to fulfill his early promise at Parkhead and moved to Stade Brest in 2022. Last season, he largely played as a substitute. In the summer, he went on loan to play for Blackpool of NFL League One.

And it seems it’s third club lucky for the winger who has taken on a starring role for Critchley’s side. With six goals and 11 assists, he’s been one of Blackpool’s top men for goal involvements and is starting regularly for the first time in his career. Much to his manager’s delight, even if he is still treating him with kid gloves.

“He’s played more minutes than he’s ever played in his whole career. You have to manage that as well, it’d be unrealistic for him to play every single minute of every game even though we want him to be on the pitch and contributing

“You also have to manage him a little bit because he’s a brilliant boy. He’s been fantastic for us, and hopefully he’ll play a big part in what we want to do between now and the end of the season. He wants to learn and we love having him in.”