LOOK-ING LIKE AN ADDICKS JANUARY SPEND-UP
NEW Charlton Athletic boss Karl Robinson will have cash to spend in the January transfer window – though how much could depend on the proposed sale of £10m wonderkid Ademola Lookman.
Reports this week suggested Everton, managed by Ronald Koeman, had beaten off a host of competition to land the 19-year-old winger, who has scored seven goals in 25 appearances this season.
Crystal Palace tabled a bid in the summer, whilst Arsenal and Tottenham have both dispatched scouts to the Valley in recent weeks.
Asked to confirm the deal, Koeman said only that “there is interest in the boy”, and refused to put a timescale on any move.
But whilst the two clubs have thrashed out a deal in principle, Ademola himself is yet to be convinced that giving up regular gametime in League One is a wise move at such a formative stage in his career.
“Ade is one of the nicest kids you’ll ever meet - very brights and very switched on,” said Robinson of the straight-A student, who already has two caps for the England Under-20 side. “Whatever happens, it has to be the right move for the club, but especially for the player.” Robinson, alongside coache Ritchie Barker and skipper Johnnie Jackson, travelled to Belgium on Thursday for talks with owner Roland Duchatelet.
Lookman’s impending transfer was discussed but of more pressing importance was the January transfer window, which Robinson last week described as “defining” for the future of the club.
The ex-MK Dons boss is thought to have pressed the case for a major overhaul and it appears Duchatelet regularly accused of neglecting the Addicks has listened, promising cash for “the right players at the right price”.