Charlton Athletic manager Lee Bowyer has delivered his personal prediction regarding the future of star striker Lyle Taylor with plenty of questions still left unanswered.

The club's new owners East Street Investments recently withdrew their most recent contract offer to the striker after their self-imposed deadline past, saying they would now be listening to offers for the marksman this month.

But Bowyer has now admitted that he believes he will stay beyond the January transfer deadline and remain with the club until the summer - although he added that the departure of midfielder Conor Gallagher has left him doubting his own predictions.

“It’s all guesswork," he admitted when asked on the future of the former AFC Wimbledon man, reported by the club's official Twitter account.

"If you ask my honest opinion, I don’t think he’ll go. But I didn’t think Conor would go, so sometimes you can’t control it.”

QUIZ: Can you name the last 12 Charlton players to wear the No.10 shirt?

Since arriving at the club in the summer of 2018, Taylor has netted 32 goals in 58 appearances, playing a huge part in their rise back into the second-tier last season, already scoring seven in 13 appearances in the Championship.

Charlton currently sit in 19th with 27 matches played this season, just five points above the relegation zone with injuries causing Bowyer's side to slip rapidly down the table over the last few months.

However, a win against Alex Neil's men on Saturday could see them rise to within just ten points of the play-off places, giving the fans plenty to remain optimistic about.

The verdict

I am inclined to agree with Bowyer on this one.

You get the feeling that Taylor is very open to a move away from Charlton but at the same time has no problem seeing out the remainder of the season at The Valley.

Doing just that would probably suit him better as well. As a free agent he would be in a really strong position and would undoubtedly have a huge array of offers at his disposal.