Lincoln City to re-sign £3m Huddersfield Town man? Doubts cast over potential Imps swoop | OneFootball

FLW's Lincoln City fan pundit has given his verdict on whether the club could re-sign Huddersfield Town striker Joe Taylor this summer.

Lincoln City will soon begin preparations for life in the Championship following their promotion from League One.

It has been an outstanding season for Lincoln, and the club secured their return to the second tier of English football for the first time in 65 years when they won promotion after a last-gasp 2-1 win at Reading on Easter Monday.

The Imps' memorable campaign continued as they sealed the League One title with a 2-0 victory at Doncaster Rovers on Tuesday night, and Michael Skubala's men will now finish off the season and then prepare for the second tier.

With the season almost over, talk among the Lincoln faithful has turned to potential summer transfer targets, and it has been suggested that former loanee Joe Taylor could be set to make a return to Sincil Bank.

Taylor spent a productive loan spell with the Imps in the second half of the 2023-24 season, scoring 10 goals and providing three assists in 19 appearances, but, after failing to establish himself at parent club Luton Town, he then made a permanent move to Huddersfield Town six months later for a fee of more than £3 million.

After scoring just nine goals in a frustrating first year with the Terriers, Taylor joined Wigan Athletic on loan in January, and he has rediscovered his form at the Brick Community Stadium, netting an impressive 11 times in just 20 appearances so far to help Gary Caldwell's men avoid relegation.

Many Wigan fans had hoped the club would sign Taylor on a full-time basis this summer, but when quizzed on the chances of striking a deal, Latics director Lucas Danson responded that he believed the 23-year-old would "go very well in the Championship next year", leading to speculation that a Lincoln reunion could be on the cards.

Lincoln City, Joe Taylor talk questioned as Huddersfield Town valuation concerns raised

When asked about the possibility of re-signing Taylor, FLW's Lincoln City fan pundit Gary Hutchinson admitted that he does not expect the striker to return to Sincil Bank this summer, claiming that Huddersfield's likely valuation will be out of the club's price range.

"The inevitable links with Joe Taylor are going to spring up over the course of the summer," Gary told FLW.

"He's being linked with a move to the Championship, he's done really well at Wigan, he's the inevitable.

"I'm not sure it's for Lincoln, if I'm honest.

"He made a £3 million move to Huddersfield, what's it going to cost to prize him away from Huddersfield? Probably a bare minimum of £2 million.

"Lincoln aren't going to spend £2 million.

"I think you'll see us plough much of our increased revenue from the Championship into the wage bill, not the transfer kitty.

"I think if we spend money on players, it's highly likely that the money will come from selling players.

"I think we'll then be looking at picking up free agents or slightly cheaper, but better value ESC players, as we did with Ivan Varfolomeev, for instance, who has obviously turned into a big hit for a fraction of the price that Joe Taylor would cost.

"I think whenever a summer comes around, there is always a clamour for clubs to sell a name because supporters want to know about their team's latest signings, they want to see the goals on his Wikipedia page, they want to see all of that.

"With his former Lincoln spell as well, it's a natural assumption to make, but, for me, I can't see us making a fresh move.

"I wouldn't be heartbroken if we did, but I just don't think it's going to happen."

Lincoln will likely be looking to add more attacking quality to their squad this summer as they prepare for the Championship, but it may be tough for them to bring Taylor back to Sincil Bank.

The Imps have achieved remarkable success this season with one of the smaller budgets in League One, and while their financial outlay will need to increase significantly if they are to survive in the second tier, they may be reluctant to pay a substantial seven-figure fee for Taylor, particularly as he is unproven at the level.