09 September 2023 , 08:00
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Notts County midfielder Dan Crowley is not giving up on his dream of playing in the Premier League - six years since being released by Arsenal.
The 26-year-old has enjoyed a fine start to life at Meadow Lane after joining the Magpies on a free transfer earlier this summer. Crowley, who left Morecambe at the end of last season, has scored twice in seven matches so far, with Notts sitting at the top of League Two.
However, it is safe to say Crowley has had a rollercoaster of a career since his permanent exit from Arsenal in 2017. He has spent time out in the Netherlands with Willem II and SC Cambuur, as well as having spells in the EFL at the likes of Birmingham, Hull and Cheltenham.
Despite now finding himself in the fourth-tier of English football, Crowley is hoping to work his way back through the pyramid and into the Premier League. Speaking to Mirror Football, he said: "I want to play in the Premier League, I want to score a lot of goals and get a load of assists. How many? I don't know."
He added: "I think it's always been in my nature to play in the Premier League. It hasn't happened for whatever reason, but that's always my goal."
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Crowley joined the Gunners as a 15-year-old from Aston Villa in 2013 after Arsene Wenger had pushed for the signing. He penned his first professional contract as soon as he turned 17 and was included in Arsenal's first-team squad to travel out for the 2015 Premier League Asia trophy in Singapore.
Although he was also hailed as a "special talent" by Wenger, Crowley failed to make a senior appearance for the Gunners before being released at the end of his contract. Although he acknowledged the disappointment of not playing a single minute, Crowley took many positives from the experience.
Jack Wilshere and Dan Crowley with Arsenal in 2015 (Getty Images)When asked about what went right, he said: "Little things that people don't see, small progress in myself, learning from such great professionals and great players.
"From the outside, it probably doesn't look like much went well, obviously it didn't end the way I wanted it to, I wanted to be playing for Arsenal in the Premier League and that didn't work out.
"But there were small, little things that went well. I learnt a lot about myself, I learnt how hard it is to play in the Premier League and to be at the top. I took a lot of learning from my time at Arsenal."
It didn't take Crowley long to find a new club after his departure from Arsenal, with the midfielder joining Eredivisie outfit Willem II on a three-year contract. He struggled for game time during his first season at the club, before Crowley went out on loan to second-tier side SC Cambuur.
Dan Crowley in action for Birmingham in 2019 (Getty Images)Having returned to Willem in the following summer, Crowley cemented his place in the XI and impressed, scoring six times in 40 appearances in 2018/19. Crowley had been linked with a move back to England with Aston Villa in January 2019, but instead he found himself signing for arch rivals Birmingham.
Crowley was a mainstay in the Blues side in his first season, but ended up falling out of favour and spending the second-half of the 2020/21 campaign on loan at Hull. He helped the Tigers win the League One title before leaving Birmingham at the end of his contract.
After a short spell at Cheltenham, a second stint with Willem and less than six months at Morecambe, Crowley dropped down to League Two with Notts in July. He is thoroughly enjoying his time in the East Midlands and admitted he hasn't been at a club before where "everything is so good".
Dan Crowley in action for Notts County last weekend (Getty Images)"I think everything has made it enjoyable," Crowley said. "The style of football, the lads, the gaffer, the people around the place. I've not been at a club where everything is so good, it's just a breath of fresh air to be here. Everyone is a good person, and also to be so good at what they do makes it even better."
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He continued: "It's nice to have a two-year contract, that gives me a bit of security but I don’t think in this team you can get complacent. The squad is so good, the players are so good. I have Sam Austin in my position and he’s such a good player, you just can't relax in this team.
"The standards are so high and if you drop them, someone just as good is going to come in and do well. What is so great about this team is that no one relaxes and thinks that their position is cemented and they are going to play on Saturday. The battles between everyone is so tight."
Notts have made an impressive start to life back in League Two. They have won four and drawn one of their six matches and sit at the top of the division heading into their game at MK Dons on Saturday.
Speaking about his weekend's game, Crowley said: " I can't see us losing. That might be a bad thing to say but the belief we have within the team, seeing how good we are and I don’t even think we’re at our best yet.
"So, seeing that is really exciting because to be doing so well and to realise we aren’t at our best, it’s not something I have been a part of before."