Former Nottingham Forest striker Garry Birtles has insisted that the club should recall Tyler Walker from his loan spell with Lincoln City in January, if he continues to find the back of the net for the Imps.

The 22-year-old scored 26 goals in all competitions for League Two side Mansfield Town last season, and played under Sabri Lamouchi in pre-season after an impressive loan spell at the One Call Stadium.

But after failing to make an impact under the Frenchman, the striker completed a move away from the City Ground in the summer, along with the likes of Daryl Murphy, Jason Cummings, Hillal Soudani and Apostolos Vellios.

Since signing for Lincoln on loan, Walker has scored five goals in nine League One appearances for the Imps, as they look to bounce back after the departure of Danny Cowley to Huddersfield.

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In the past, Lamouchi has shared his frustrations after failing to bring in another striker before the summer transfer deadline, with Lewis Grabban and Rafa Mir now the club's only out-and-out striking options up top.

But speaking in his latest Nottingham Post column, former Reds striker Birtles insisted that the club should look to recall Walker in January, rather than sign another striker.

He said: "Tyler Walker has already got five goals for Lincoln City this season after scoring against Rochdale on Tuesday night. That's five in 11 games this season. If he keeps that ratio up then why not bring him back early from his loan spell in January?

"Nottingham Forest only have two senior strikers in contention at the moment and one of them, Rafa Mir, is yet to prove he can cut it in the Championship.

"That's a lot of pressure on Lewis Grabban to deliver. At the moment he is absolutely doing that. If he gets injured it would be such a blow to Forest's chances.

"They'll have the chance to sign someone else in January if there is nothing in the free agent market before then, but it might be a case of why look elsewhere?"

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Forest face Barnsley at the City Ground this weekend, with the Reds looking to break into the top six spots following an impressive 1-0 win against high-flying Swansea City last weekend.

Lamouchi's side occupy 10th spot in the Sky Bet Championship table.

The Verdict

I was actually quite surprised when Walker was sent out on loan to Lincoln in the summer - I thought that he could have been of real use to Forest this season.

He was excellent for Mansfield last season and was perhaps a class above League Two, and he is now starting to prove that he can be prolific in League One as well.

If Forest have the chance to recall him in January, they should look to do so. It would be cheaper to do that rather than splashing the cash on another striker, and Mir and Grabban just isn't enough if they want to get promoted.