Mansfield Town suffered a 2-0 defeat away to Port Vale in their EFL Trophy group stage match on Tuesday night. The loss at Vale Park was confirmed by an early own goal and a second-half strike from a substitute.
Port Vale took the lead in just the fourth minute when Mansfield defender Stephen McLaughlin turned the ball into his own net. The visitors created several chances to level the score, with Rhys Oates seeing a low effort saved by Marko Marosi ten minutes after the break. Luke Bolton also saw a diverted effort crash off the crossbar.
Asamoah seals it
Any hope of a comeback was extinguished shortly before the hour mark. Port Vale introduced Maleace Asamoah as part of a double substitution in the 57th minute, and the forward scored just twenty seconds after coming onto the pitch to make it 2-0. Mansfield manager Nigel Clough made changes of his own, bringing on Tyler Roberts and George Abbott in the 63rd minute, but his side could not find a way back into the tie.
Discipline and possession
The match saw three yellow cards issued, with Mansfield's Ryan Sweeney and Jonathan Russell both booked for fouls. Port Vale enjoyed 55% of possession and managed ten shots to Mansfield's five, though only two of those were on target. The Stags' next match is a return to League One action at home to Bromley this Saturday.
This result leaves Mansfield Town 17th in the League One table with eight points from seven games. Their recent form shows two draws and three losses from their last five matches across all competitions. The team will look to bounce back quickly against a Bromley side sitting 19th in the standings. A full breakdown of the league table is available on our standings page. Port Vale Football Club said the win was "a confidence-boosting trophy victory." The focus for Mansfield now shifts entirely to securing three points at One Call Stadium this weekend.
