The decision to recall striker Nathan Lowe from his loan stint with Walsall, where he had returned 18 goals from just 30 games across all competitions, has been supported by Stoke City and Mark Robins.
The team that former Coventry City manager Robins took over this season is having a terrible season in front of goal. With 0.9 goals per game, Stoke has the lowest return in the Championship, lower than 24th-place Plymouth Argyle. At the time of writing, they are only four points above the drop zone and 19th in the league table.
An xG of 30.9 for Stoke, who have scored 24 goals, makes for better reading but still reflects their goalscoring issues, which Robins is looking to address this month as he bids to consolidate his new side and build the foundations for next season and beyond.
There is significant uncertainty surrounding the immediate future of Tom Cannon, who has shone on loan from Leicester City this term but could be recalled ahead of a permanent departure from the King Power Stadium. As per TEAMtalk reporter Fraser Fletcher, Cannon is of interest to promotion-chasing duo Sunderland and Sheffield United, the latter of whom are said to have launched a £7 million for the striker’s services.
Although there have long been worries that Cannon would be called up, Stoke was lucky to sign him for the season in the first place, and he has been a key player this season.
At this point in the season, no other player in the Potteries has scored more than three goals, and the Republic of Ireland international has nine Championship goals for Stoke.
Therefore, losing him is a legitimate and serious cause for concern, which Stoke seems to have tried to counteract by bringing up Lowe.
The 19-year-old academy product, who played 13 times for the Potters last season, had enjoyed an outstanding first-half of the season with runaway League Two leaders Walsall.
Lowe scored 18 goals and made a further seven assists from 30 appearances across all competitions, and no player in League Two is yet to surpass his 15 strikes.
He’s a massive reason why Walsall are sure to scoop the League Two title this term, and considering that sort of form, it’s really little wonder Stoke decided to exercise their recall option.
FLW asked Sam Harrison, a resident Potters fan commentator, if he thought the decision to recall the star forward was the right one after hearing of Lowe’s return to the Bet 365 Stadium.
Sam has a lot of faith in Robins and has supported his decision, but he thinks it will take time to determine if it was the right one.
“In terms of Nathan Lowe and whether this is the right decision, I think the biggest thing is time will tell,” Sam told FLW.
“It does differ and it depends on the Tom Cannon situation. Does that play a factor? I’m not sure. That’s another one where time will tell and we’ll find out very, very soon.
“But I think because he’s doing so well and we’ve got a striker we’ve not had before in Tom Cannon, who is banging in the goals, there’s no worry or call for a striker to come.
“It was great to see Lowe going out on loan and enjoying himself. It’s tough because if this was under Narcis Pelach, you would have even more frustration but there’s definitely trust in Mark Robins, we’ll find out the plan on Lowe – is he going back on loan or is he in his plans?
“He knows where the back of the net is and would give strength in depth. But it’s all about his development, so I think time will tell and it’s tough to say it’s a bad call as Stoke are adding depth and quality in Lowe.
“However, personal development and his growth as someone who is still coming into the first-team, you’ve got to wonder if he would’ve done better staying at Walsall and continuing his fine form. “It’s more a case of trusting the process if I’m being honest, and under Robins a lot of Stoke fans will trust it and whatever the decision is with Lowe. It’ll be interesting to see what the approach is behind it.”
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