Stoke City will face an uncertain January window, with Tom Cannon perhaps being recalled by Leicester City, but the club must not move to do the same with Nathan Lowe at Walsall, instead allowing him to continue developing on loan.
The Potters have struggled in front of goal this season, but Cannon has been scoring rather consistently, which should come as no surprise given the fierce competition for his signature in the summer window.
His performances have sparked suspicions that the Foxes are planning to recall him in the new year, either to sell him or keep him in their Premier League squad, and Stoke will be on the lookout for solutions to the actual problem that would arise if he is not doing his trade in ST4 by February.
Nathan Lowe, the Potters’ own loanee, has shone in his time at Walsall in League Two, winning individual awards and guiding the Saddlers up the league in their pursuit of automatic promotion.
The 19-year-old’s impressive performances have prompted Potters fans to call for his return if disaster strikes with Cannon, but it would be far more sensible to keep him on loan at Walsall so he can get a full season of consistent senior football under his belt before returning to the bet365 Stadium.
Nathan Lowe has been a hit at Walsall thus far.
Lowe joined Stoke at the age of ten in 2016, and worked his way up to the first team, where he was given his first consistent chances in senior football under Alex Neil and Steven Schumacher last season, despite the side’s troubles in front of goal.
He scored a dream first goal for his hometown club, an 89th-minute winner against Bristol City in September, and went on to make 15 appearances in all competitions while mostly coming off the bench for the rest of his first full season.
The 19-year-old joined Walsall late in the summer window, after Stoke had waited to acquire Sam Gallagher from Blackburn Rovers, and made an immediate impression with two goals in his debut game for the club against Huddersfield Town in the EFL Cup.
Lowe followed that up with his first league goal for the Saddlers two days later, against Cheltenham Town, and has scarcely looked back in recent months as Mat Sadler’s team makes a serious push for the fourth-tier title.
He won the EFL’s Young Player of the Month award in October after scoring four goals and providing one assist in five appearances, and he has since continued to appear at crucial moments, with his most recent goal sealing a late win over Notts County to keep Walsall within touching distance of table-toppers Port Vale.
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