Birmingham City boss Lee Bowyer has admitted to the Birmingham Mail that he is pleased that Jonathan Leko has made a good start to life back at Charlton Athletic. 

The 22-year-old forward was loaned out by Bowyer to his old side on deadline day and has already made an instant impact after scoring on his second debut for the club against Cheltenham Town.

Leko was previously brought in to play at Charlton by Bowyer during the 2019/20 season during the attacker's time at West Brom and is seemingly settling into life well back at the Valley.

Speaking recently about his player's exploits back at his old stomping ground, Bowyer was quick to state the following:

"I am delighted for Jonathan – that was the whole point of it. I know he knows the place, in his comfort zone if you like. He is going somewhere where he was loved and for him to go there and score on his debut is great.

"I want him to go and get the minutes under his belt, improve and get back to the player I know he is. But for him staying here it would have been difficult to get minutes.

"He needed to go and play. Hopefully he carries on from the weekend and keeps scoring goals for Charlton."

Leko previously made 21 appearances for the Addicks during his previous spell in South London and notched up an impressive five goals and four assists in the process.

The youngster only signed for Birmingham City in the summer of last year and has since gone on to make close to 40 league appearances for the club.

The Verdict 

Leko is now playing at a level that most people will have expected as he isn't really up to the standard of the Sky Bet Championship just yet.

It is a clever loan move from all involved as Leko has gone to a club that both he and Bowyer know well from their previous stints there.

If he can start to bang in the goals and contribute with assists on a regular basis, there is every chance that he could force his way back in the manager's plans at St Andrew's.

It'll certainly be interesting to see how he gets on at Charlton this season after such a lightening start.