"We need to try" - Charlton Athletic transfer demand made to aid Nathan Jones | OneFootball

The Addicks will be looking to keep hold of their top talents in January

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Charlton Athletic have enjoyed a mixed start to the 24/25 League One campaign, with the Addicks currently slap bang in the middle of the third tier table.

Nathan Jones’ side lost just one league game throughout October, but three draws out of five saw them lose even more ground on the leading pack, off the back of three successive defeats in September.

A 1-0 victory over Birmingham City has proven they have what it takes to rise to the occasion when it is needed, with the ample quality within the squad rising to the fore when required, and highlighting the talents that Jones has at his disposal.

With that in mind, we spoke to Football League World’s Charlton fan pundit Ben Fleming about his thoughts on the upcoming January transfer window, and just what he would be asking of his club’s board when 2025 gets underway.

Charlton Athletic told to keep hold of top talent to maintain solid start to League One campaign

Athletic boast a squad perfectly capable of challenging further up the League One table as the season progresses, with the London side boasting quality all over the pitch.

With the additions of Matt Godden and Gassan Ahadme joining academy graduates Miles Leaburn and Tyreece Campbell up top over the summer, there is plenty of firepower at the club, with the young stars proving themselves as top EFL talents for the future.

Kayne Ramsay is another summer arrival who has proven his worth since making the move to the capital from Harrogate Town in the summer, with the defender thriving under Jones’ stewardship, with Charlton having one of the best defensive records in the division.

With slight tweaks needed at either end of the pitch to turn draws into victories, Fleming admits he is very happy with the situation the club finds itself in of late, and was keen to keep the current squad intact through January rather than showing a thirst for new arrivals.

When asked of his January demands, the Charlton fan said: “To be honest, I think the business over the summer was good, I think there is a balanced squad in there, and I don’t think there is necessarily a need to add to it too much.

“We could maybe look at sending some of the guys out on loan who aren’t getting as much game time, and maybe look at bringing players in on loan to plug a few injury-related gaps.

“But mainly I would say we need to try to hold on to our key assets; guys like Kayne Ramsay, Miles Leaburn, someone like Tyreece Campbell could be gathering transfer attention, as well as Thierry Small.

“We have just got to try and keep the squad together, and if the opportunity arises to bring in a player that will add to the quality we can do, but I think we have got a fairly sensible squad.

“Sometimes less is more, and this could be one of the windows where that is the case.”

Drawing games is costing Charlton Athletic once again

Finishing the 90 minutes with the points shared is something that Charlton fans must have become used to over the past 15 months, with no other side coming close to their record of recording draws since the start of the 23/24 League One campaign.

While the Addicks seem capable of pushing towards the top of the table, a lack of ability to put games to bed has seen them end up with 24 draws since August 2023, with plenty of points being dropped as a result.

Of the 20 clubs who have been in the division for the same amount of time, Barnsley and Lincoln City are the pair that come the closest to that record, with 17 spoils being shared when either of those two sides have been on the pitch.

While there is no question that Athletic have the quality to push towards the top of the table, it is a familiar story in terms of dropping points so far this season, as their recent results show.

But with more time to mould the team to his liking, Jones could finally find a consistent winning formula if he manages to keep his side intact for the second-half of the campaign, and live up to their early-season billing as contenders for promotion.