Stoke City: Blackburn Rovers, Sam Gallagher swoop could trigger Potters exit - View | OneFootball

Young striker Nathan Lowe is surely set to leave on loan after Gallagher's arrival in the Potteries

Stoke City sprung a surprise by keeping young striker Nathan Lowe in the first-team last season, but now feels like the right time for him to leave the club on loan after Sam Gallagher's arrival from Blackburn Rovers.

Lowe joined Stoke at age 10 in 2016, and worked his way to the first-team to be handed his first consistent chances in senior football under Alex Neil and current boss Steven Schumacher last season amid the team's struggles in front of goal.

Following a largely barren campaign for the whole forward line in 2023/24, the Potters have moved to bring in striking reinforcements, with Gallagher arriving from Rovers on a three-year deal for a reported £1.5m fee.

18-year-old Lowe put in a good shift throughout his debut campaign, but he has shown that he is not quite ready to be a permanent fixture in Schumacher's squad for 2024/25, and Gallagher's arrival means Stoke will have five centre-forwards on their books heading into the closing stages of the summer window.

That means Lowe is less likely to get games in the first-team, and he would definitely benefit from a season in the third or fourth tier to continue his development into being a top striker.

Lowe needs a loan this season

The Harlow-born striker joined the Potters' academy ranks in 2016, and has previously described himself as a "bit of an underdog" that was close to being released by Stoke "quite a few times" in his formative years, owing to his body taking it's time to develop into the 6 ft 3 inch frame that he stands at today.

He was prolific at U18 level in the 2021/22 and 2022/23 seasons, and signed his first professional contract on his 17th birthday in September 2022, ahead of a promotion to first-team training in 2023.

Alex Neil gave Lowe his senior debut as a substitute against Blackpool in February 2023, then he featured off the bench again in the FA Cup against Brighton ten days later, and made the matchday squad three more times in the Championship before the end of the campaign.

He was kept in and around the first-team last campaign while also turning out for the U21's, then enjoyed a dream first league appearance of the season on September 30, as he stepped off the bench to bag an 89th minute winner at Bristol City, and end Stoke's five-game winless run in the process.

The 18-year-old made 15 appearances in all competitions under both Neil and Schumacher, but could not build on his goal at Ashton Gate and was largely used off the bench throughout the rest of his first full campaign.

He now faces an even tougher battle for a spot in the squad every week with the arrival of 28-year-old Gallagher, who's signing means that there is another target-man joining Schumacher's squad, and one with a lot more experience and seniority in the game.

Schumacher has a decision to make

While Lowe has shown glimpses of the talent that saw him win a first call-up to the England U19 side last year, he has often gone under the radar as a youth player due to the potential of long-time strike partner Emre Tezgel.

Burton-born Tezgel has long been identified as the answer to Stoke's striking woes over the last few years, after he was similarly prolific at youth level and became the youngest player to ever play for Stoke in January 2022, when he came on as a late substitute in an FA Cup victory over Leyton Orient.

After a stop-start season with injury in 2022/23, he returned to action for the Potters' youth sides last season and then headed out on loan to MK Dons in the January transfer window, where he registered three goals and assists each in just five league starts and 17 appearances under Mike Williamson, a decent return given his age, past injury issues and lack of minutes.

Tezgel has been back in the first-team fold so far in pre-season under Schumacher, and bagged a brace against Chester on July 11, then was handed a start against Bolton Wanderers in the Potters' penultimate friendly on July 30, in a move that could give some insight into the 40-year-old's thinking for 2024/25.

His re-emergence will only add to the likelihood of Lowe heading out on loan in the coming weeks, and along with those two youngsters and Gallagher, Stoke also have Ryan Mmaee and Niall Ennis in their forward line as it stands - five strikers is surely a few too many to accommodate for Schumacher, so something has to give, and it looks most likely to be Lowe.

The 18-year-old's style of play would be well-suited to a team that likes to press from the front and utilise their strikers aerially, rather than on the shoulder of the defence, and he would fit well in a lower League One or top-half League Two side, as he builds up his strength and nous in men's football to hopefully become a permanent fixture in Stoke's first-team for years to come.