Charlton Athletic should take Man City transfer gamble on player already impressing on a world stage | OneFootball

Charlton Athletic should take the plunge on trying to sign Manchester City youngster Reigan Heskey in the January transfer window.

Charlton Athletic have surpassed expectations in the opening couple of months of this season, and they have a good chance to build again in January to try and sustain what is quickly becoming a promotion challenge for the Addicks.

Nathan Jones has built a very well-structured side that are extremely difficult to beat, but Charlton may just be missing an added spark to really push for the Premier League and the south Londoners should be willing to gamble on Manchester City youngster Reigan Heskey.

Having defeated Leyton Orient in the League One play-off final at Wembley Stadium in May, Charlton soon embarked on what appeared to be a very impressive summer transfer window.

A strong start to the campaign has seen Charlton sit just a couple of points outside of the top six and the play-off places in the Championship at the November international break.

Coming up a third of the way through the 2025/26 season, there is a growing belief that the natural pre-season expectations of simply surviving in the second-tier can now be slightly adjusted to being a little more optimistic and pushing for those top six spots.

Jones is renowned for cultivating a brilliant spirit within his successful sides, and the defensive tenacity of the Addicks have made them extremely difficult for all teams in the Championship to play against.

The foundation is laid and a sprinkling of star dust wouldn’t go amiss to try and help them continue their overachievement, and Heskey, completely unproven and still very young, could prove to be a masterstroke with no real downside for either the club nor the player should things not go entirely according to plan.

Charlton Athletic could do with an extra spark in attack

Towards the close of the summer transfer window, Charlton were linked with a move for Chelsea striker David Datro Fofana, despite an abundance of strikers at The Valley.

That would have indicated that Charlton wanted another attacker to supplement their forward line, despite beginning the season by sticking with a 4-2-3-1 shape.

They have since shown a tactical flexibility throughout the campaign and actually went into the break playing a back three system with Harvey Knibbs starting their most recent outing in behind two strikers.

What that would suggest is that the profile of attacker that Charlton may want, and their intention is likely to remain the same as it did at the end of the summer, so another attacking incoming is likely, but doesn’t have to specifically be a striker.

In fact, the versatility of Jones’ coaching and the Charlton setup may well indicate that a more versatile attacker is preferred for January and someone of the ilk of Reigan Heskey, who is a left-winger that has played more centrally for England at youth level on occasion, could be an ideal fit.

A spark and added creativity wouldn’t go amiss in a functional but well organised Charlton side and being able to beat teams with a spark of quality, as well as exploiting the opponents’ weaknesses and limiting their attacking potential, could further enhance their promotion credentials.

According to FotMob, Charlton are 16th in the division for big chances created, middle of the road for accurate crosses and fourth lowest for expected goals.

This would indicate quite a defensive style of football, as is proven with the eye test when watching a Jones-led approach, but in order to take another step, finding someone who can create from open play off the cuff would be a blessing.

There is a lack of quality wide play within their squad, too, as perhaps shown best by only Isaac Olaofe managing over one successful dribble per game, and even his success rate is as low as 37.5%.

Sonny Carey provides a creative spark and quality behind the attackers such as Olaofe, Tyreece Campbell and Miles Leaburn but, if Jones is to continue to switch the system, then someone with that ability from out-wide would also be welcome.

Having already made his first-team debut for Manchester City this season, in a 2-0 EFL Cup third round victory away to Huddersfield Town, Reigan Heskey has a burgeoning reputation.

The 17-year-old had continued to enhance that reputation at the ongoing 2025 FIFA U17 World Cup in Qatar, with some excellent performances for the Young Lions before their round of 16 exit to Austria in Al Rayyan.

Heskey scored four goals on England’s way to the last eight, whilst also providing four assists, and if recent history is anything to go by then it is well worth taking the plunge on the star man from an England youth side.

Heskey remains extremely young but is already playing above his age group level for England, too, having represented the U18 side earlier this year, and there is a belief he could rise rapidly in the coming years.

A loan move to the EFL to build up the experience and strength of the Liverpool-born 17-year-old, who is the son of former England international striker Emile, could soon be on the cards and Charlton should enter the conversation if so.

For the Addicks, if Heskey is proven to not yet be ready for Championship level then the functionality and structure of a Jones side would not be disrupted and their pre-season expectations of avoiding the drop are already going to be comfortably met.

For Heskey, if a loan move doesn’t work out just yet then there is a lot of time, as well as plenty of previous examples, such as England captain Harry Kane to name just one, to suggest that isn’t a massive indicator of how his career goes.

It would therefore be a low-risk gamble for both Charlton and the player, but the upside would be that, as they search for a top six berth, Charlton land themselves a gem that is coming through one of the most competitive academies in the country and someone who may well be destined for the top of the English game to be a point of difference in the final third.