Stoke City transfer reward outweighs the risk for Wycombe Wanderers | OneFootball

Wycombe Wanderers took a risk signing the injured Nathan Lowe on loan from Stoke City, but the rewards certainly outweigh them.

Wycombe Wanderers took a big risk by signing the injured Nathan Lowe on loan from Stoke City in January, but the potential rewards of this deal outweigh any of those concerns.

If you asked any Wycombe fan pre-January about which position would be a priority to strengthen in the transfer window, an overwhelming majority would've pointed out the need for a new striker, given the struggles of Cauley Woodrow and Bradley Fink in front of goal.

Thankfully, supporters' prayers were answered by Michael Duff and his recruitment team, as they landed highly-rated forward Lowe on loan from Stoke for the rest of the campaign.

However, the catch with this signing was that Wanderers would have to wait a few weeks for the 20-year-old to become available for selection, as he was completing rehabilitation for a leg injury he sustained whilst on loan at Stockport County.

Lowe is now inching ever closer to his Chairboys debut having completed his rehab, and whilst the club had to take some short-term pain in waiting for him, the rewards they could reap from his signing massively outweigh any risks.

Scoring goals in general hasn't necessarily been too much of an issue for Wycombe, but getting their strikers to find the net has cost them points on occasions, with recent matches against Peterborough United and Mansfield Town being notable examples.

Having seen top scorer at the time, Sam Bell, recalled by Bristol City in the winter, it was clear the Buckinghamshire club needed to add a fresh source of goals to the squad, in particular a central threat who can finish off the chances provided by the creative wide players.

Both Woodrow and Fink had struggled to be that attacking focal point, with the former coming under criticism for dropping too deep and not getting into scoring positions, and the latter seemingly struggling to adapt to League One, albeit with a lack of minutes.

Many pondered who Wycombe would land on to lead the line in the second half of the season, as finding a natural goalscorer for a reasonable price is difficult at the best of times, let alone in January.

The big surprise came when the Chairboys announced Lowe as their new star striker late one Friday evening completely out of the blue, and it's fair to say it was a welcome surprise for supporters, who'd finally had their prayers for a new forward answered.

On paper, this looked like a sensational coup for Wycombe, but there was a catch which acted as somewhat of a dark cloud in the sunshine, and that was that Wanderers would have to wait a few weeks before Lowe was available for selection.

The 20-year-old's loan spell at Stockport was cut short after he suffered a leg injury in early December, allowing him to return to Stoke and commence rehabilitation at his parent club's Clayton Wood base.

Obviously, this added a huge risk factor to the signing, but importantly, Duff was unbothered by this, stating that he'd rather wait a few weeks for someone he wanted, than sign someone for the sake of it.

Reward outweighs risk for Nathan Lowe at Wycombe Wanderers

There was obviously some concern over the addition of Lowe, due to the reliance on his rehab at Stoke being a success. If he took longer than expected to return, Wycombe could already be out of the play-off picture by the time he's ready to play.

Fortunately, things seem to be going well for the forward. He's already linked up with the squad at Marlow Road, and is seemingly edging towards his Chairboys debut. In the meantime, his new colleagues are doing a solid job of keeping the Blues in the play-off race.

With Lowe now closing in on a return to action, it seems that the risky period is coming to a close, and Wycombe can start looking to reap the rewards, which massively outweigh any risks they took to bring him to Adams Park.

Firstly, the 20-year-old has a wealth of recent goalscoring success, with his stint at Walsall last season being the most prominent example. He's that proper out-and-out number nine that Duff's side have been crying out for, with the perfect profile to fit the system.

Lowe has all the attributes of a striker who will bring a new edge to Wycombe's attack. He has that instinct able to get into those goalscoring positions and finish off chances, which has been one of the main problems the Chairboys have faced.

The Stoke loanee is surrounded by excellent creative players, who have been able to create chances, but haven't had anyone to finish them off. This is exactly what Lowe will be able to do thanks to his brilliant attacking intuition.

Personally for Lowe, he will also be hungry to succeed at Adams Park. His loan spell at Stockport didn't go to plan, as he was played out of position by Dave Challinor, which meant he was unable to show his true skillset at Edgeley Park.

With that in mind, the Potters prodigy will be champing at the bit to prove himself at Wycombe, and get back amongst the goals, following what's been a frustrating 12 months for him since his Walsall departure.

Wycombe took a big gamble banking on Lowe to solve their striker troubles. Whilst his quality is unquestionable, waiting for him to complete rehab and get up to speed is a nervous time for everyone connected with the club.

However, if the play-off hopefuls can get between five and ten goals from their new addition, the risk of signing a player recovering from an injury will certainly be forgotten about very quickly.