Lincoln City could tap into Stoke City developments to unearth next Joe Taylor | OneFootball

Lincoln City should tap into potential changes of policy at Stoke City to finally recruit their Joe Taylor replacement.

Lincoln City should tap into potential changes of policy at Stoke City to recruit the next Joe Taylor.

The Imps have made clear that they will not be looking to overhaul this squad in January, but have indicated that improvements are being sought to the team that has won just one of their most recent 12 Sky Bet League One games.

Stoke City man could be the answer to Lincoln City issues

League Two leaders Walsall have a star man on their hands. Nathan Lowe has scored 17 goals in 29 appearances so far this season, assisting six more along the way, as the Saddlers have pulled clear at the summit of the fourth tier.

His loan spell is due to last the full season, coming from a Stoke side that the 19-year-old has only played 17 times for.

Those numbers eclipse the figures Taylor amassed, who earned a step into League One off the back of 12 goals in 27 games at Colchester United in the first half of last season.

Michael Skubala has tempered expectations for Lincoln's January transfer window but has admitted his squad needs fresh additions. With Rob Street sent to Doncaster Rovers on loan and Tyler Walker succumbing to the latest in a long string of injuries, a striker is surely the first port of call.

Last January, Lincoln poached League Two’s top-performing marksman at the halfway stage and they should look to emulate that success once more.

Signing Nathan Lowe would not be easy for Lincoln City

However, there is no doubt that the move would be a difficult one to pull off.

Huddersfield Town are seeking the signature of the capped England youth international, according to exclusive reporting from Football League World. Lowe rejected that move, it is understood, being keen to remain at high-flying Walsall for the remainder of the 2024/25 campaign.

That naturally makes any potential deal a difficult one to strike but with new management at Stoke City, you cannot write a change of location off for Lowe. Mark Robins has recently taken the helm at the Potters and could push for the young forward to be installed in a higher division.

If that happens, then the Imps need to make sure they're in the queue for the forward. There is precedent from a Lincoln perspective, given they sealed a loan move for the highly sought-after Taylor in January last season after he excelled in League Two for the first half of the campaign.

The Luton Town loanee's Colchester stint brought him to the attention of a number of League One clubs and it seems Lowe has now done the same with Huddersfield the reportedly interested party.

Luton mainstay Mark Harford was a key ingredient of Taylor’s move to the LNER Stadium, easing the transition of the youngster to one of his own former clubs. That added incentive is missing in any lofty hope of a stab at recruiting Lowe, though.

Should the Imps be looking to boost their play-off challenging potential, a statement signing like Lowe would go a very long way. It seems their only hope would be that Stoke’s new boss sees a need to recall the striker and lift him into the third tier of English football.