Tootle has not played a competitive first team game yet

Crewe youngster Matt Tootle has insisted he will take his chance if he is handed his debut in the League Two game against Northampton on Saturday.

Tootle, 19, will start if John Brayford is ruled out with a shoulder problem.

"It's not about feeling ready. It's all about proving to everyone you can do it and progressing your career," he told BBC Radio Stoke.

"Dario (Gradi) won't put any pressure on me. You've just got to go in there and do well, because football's cruel."

The return of Gradi to the manager's chair at the Alexandra Stadium has also signalled the return of several players from the club's youth academy to first-team action.

The likes of James Bailey, Byron Moore, Shaun Miller, Luke Murphy and Ashley Westwood had found chances hard to come by under former boss Gudjon Thordarson.

However, seeing those players perform for the first team has given hope to Tootle.

"When you're younger, that's why you come to Crewe because you think you'll get your chance and get in the first team," he added.

"People don't care where they're playing when they're in the first team. When you get that chance, if you do well, you'll stay in."

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