Charlton Athletic's Nathan Jones may hate Birmingham City, Leicester transfer update - but Charlie Kelman won't | OneFootball

Leicester City are showing an interest in Lyndon Dykes, Charlton Athletic will not like this competition. It's good news for Charlie Kelman, however.

Charlton Athletic have found life in the Championship tough in recent weeks, and after a strong start to the season, the Addicks now find themselves in a relegation scrap.

Nathan Jones' side were involved in the initial top six fight as they returned to the second tier following victory in the League play-off final in May over Leyton Orient, a game in which defender Macaulay Gillesphey scored the only goal of the game.

However, finding the back of the net has been an incredibly difficult task for the South-East London outfit, with Sonny Carey currently their top scorer in the league with just five goals. Bringing in a striker with Championship experience is a must, especially with Charlie Kelman only pitching in with four goals himself.

Lyndon Dykes has been on the radar of Charlton over the course of the last week, although Football League World understands that Birmingham City have been waiting until a replacement is sought before letting go of the Scotland international.

Nonetheless, Leicester City have now entered the battle for Dykes, while Ipswich Town are also keen.

This is bad news for the Addicks, but Kelman himself must be relieved.

Charlie Kelman will feel relief at Leicester City's Lyndon Dykes interest

The Daily Mail have reported the Foxes' interest in the 30-year-old, with Marti Cifuentes parting ways with defender Wout Faes on Tuesday, while Harry Winks could be sent out on loan.

Cifuentes managed Dykes at QPR, and is looking to reunite with the New Zealand-born striker, and this connection may well give Leicester the upper hand in negotiations. While Charlton may be disappointed, another former R's forward will be extremely pleased.

Kelman had an extraordinary loan spell at Leyton Orient in 2024/25 in the third tier, but he has not been able to replicate that form so far this season. His four goals in 18 Championship games is potentially a sign of that struggle, but he has only started 13 of those matches.

Nonetheless, if Charlton are unable to bring in another forward this winter, then the pressure will be on the former USA U20 international to start finding the back of the net. Miles Leaburn and Tanto Olaofe have both failed to light up the second tier and therefore the pressure is on Kelman to be Jones' leading man.

Dykes would give him ample support, but he could outshine him due to his experience at this level, and the 24-year-old will be extremely keen to prove himself in the Championship as the threat of relegation looms at The Valley.

Charlie Kelman needs to step up in the second half of the season

At 24, there is no denying the fact that time is very much on the side of Kelman, and he does have all the ability to become a very good Championship striker. However, it's now or never for the Basildon-born man, with Charlton's lowly league position.

His xG rate of 2.91 shows that the quality of chance that he is getting has not been relatively high, and he needs more support from his teammates in helping create those opportunities for him on a more frequent basis.

It is clear that Kelman's best work comes off the ball, and he is not a striker who will be too involved in the build-up of play. He will play off the shoulder, and therefore Charlton must utilise this part of his game, just as Leyton Orient did last season.

A deal for Dykes is still not out of the question, and a partnership of Kelman and the Birmingham striker has the potential to be excellent, but the threat of Leicester will be felt strongly.