Former Aston Villa full-back Alan Hutton has revealed his anguish at not seeing 23-year-old Keinan Davis make a loan move to Stoke City this summer, in an interview with Football Insider.
Dean Smith planned to send Davis out on loan to the Championship this summer to provide the forward with more first-team minutes, something the Premier League side are currently unable to accommodate with the likes of Ollie Watkins and Wesley ahead of him in the pecking order.
After making 15 Premier League appearances last term, a move to the second tier was well in reach for the striker who was likely to link up with Michael O'Neill's Stoke City temporarily, according to The Telegraph's John Percy last month.
However, Monday's report from Football Insider revealed the 23-year-old had suffered a major injury blow, keeping him out for around two months and ending any hopes of him moving to the bet365 Stadium during this window.
With this, the Potters have moved for Sam Surridge whose arrival was officially confirmed this morning, after agreeing a £5.5m fee with AFC Bournemouth for his services.
Manchester City forward Liam Delap is also on the Staffordshire side's radar and hold the advantage of having father Rory as part of their first-team coaching staff, with manager O'Neill recently confirming their interest in bringing the 18-year-old to the Championship.
This could put a stop to any potential January move for the Aston Villa forward, which will be a big blow considering his need to go out and play regularly.
Pundit Alan Hutton is one man who sympathises with the 23-year-old and in an interview with Football Insider, the former full-back said: "It’s a real shame.
"First and foremost, he’s a great lad, he works ever so hard. He’s had to bide his time to get in the team.
"He’s had his injury problems. That’s probably the one thing that’s not helped his development. I feel for him. I think Stoke would have been a good move.
"He’d have played games, got minutes under his belt and he’s got all the attributes. He ticks all the boxes for a top centre-forward. It’s just staying fit.
"I really feel for him that this has broken down over an injury. Two months is a long time. Hopefully, he’s back sooner, but it looks like that’s going to fall through now.
"Obviously, he won’t be able to move on. Hopefully, he can get back fit as soon as possible, stay fit and fight for the team."
The Verdict:
Despite this latest setback, Keinan Davis shouldn't give up all hope and should continue to search for a loan deal ahead of the January transfer window, because he was subject of interest from Swansea City and Bristol City earlier this year and both could still benefit from adding another striker to their squad.
Although Nigel Pearson has five or six forward options to choose from at Ashton Gate, he doesn't yet have a main goalscorer and with a limited budget, could potentially negotiate a loan deal in January to add more firepower up top.
And at Swansea City, they may have signed PSV's Joel Piroe this summer, but the departure of talisman Andre Ayew is a big blow at the Liberty Stadium and they would ideally want another forward at some point to help fill the major void the Ghanaian has left.
They may have sold multiple players including Dan James, Oliver McBurnie and Joe Rodon for eight-figure fees over the past couple of years, but the Swans seem reluctant to spend money so a loan agreement with Villa for the 23-year-old may be on the cards in five months.