Theo Archibald has signed a short-term contract with Leyton Orient that keeps him at Brisbane Road until the end of the season, bringing him back into first-team registration after a long period on the sidelines.
The winger, who previously spent time with us at City before moving to Orient in 2021, has been out of competitive action since February 2024 because of a persistent knee injury.
Archibald’s name is familiar from his spell at City earlier in his career, as part of the 2020/21 squad that went all the way to the play-off final. His move back into the senior picture at Orient marks a significant step in what has been a lengthy recovery process.
His new deal includes an option for Orient to extend the agreement by an additional season, based on the number of appearances he makes between now and the summer.
“Playing for this club again has always been, and remains, my aim. I never gave up hope of that during the tougher periods and I am now a step closer to it,” he said.
“There is still work for me to do before I can play for the first team again and I will be giving my maximum to everything that is asked of me.”
His first task is to build minutes with the under-21s and in behind-closed-doors friendlies. Orient’s director of football, Martin Ling, confirmed that re-registering Archibald as a player now allows him to compete in those matches. Ling outlined the next steps clearly, stating that the winger will first need to play for the under-21s and feature in friendlies, after which he could be considered for a place in the first team squad if everything progresses as planned.
Archibald originally joined Orient on loan from City in 2021 before signing permanently in the following summer window. Since then, he has made 117 appearances for the club and was part of their League Two promotion campaign in 2022 to 2023, scoring five goals in 35 appearances during that season.
Archibald played just 12 times for City, seven times in the league and the rest in the cup. He fell out of favour with Michael Appleton, and then found his former manager, Mark Kennedy, taking over. He’d previously asked to leave Macclesfield while working under Kennedy, so he never got a chance to stake a claim.
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