After Isaac Hutchinson left, Charlie Lakin was signed by Walsall on a free transfer, strengthening their midfield.
Lakin, 25, of Solihull, was let go by League One team Burton Albion this summer following a strong second half of the previous year while playing on loan in League Two with Sutton United, a rival team of Walsall.
The box-to-box midfielder finished second-bottom in the league and contributed five assists in addition to eight goals in the second half of the season, but he was unable to keep his loan team from going down.
Even though Lakin had only been with the team for a few months, his performances during the course of his 21 Yellows outings were sufficient for him to win two player of the season accolades. With just six appearances during the first half of the season, the loan at AFC Wimbledon was less successful.
After AFC Fylde right-back Connor Barrett, Lakin has signed a two-year contract at the Bescot Stadium, becoming manager Mat Sadler’s second summer addition. Over the past two weeks, the majority of League Two has inquired about Lakin’s services, according to the head coach of the Saddlers.
His arrival gives the Saddlers a boost in the midfield after player of the season Hutchinson left this week for Bristol Rovers, a team in the higher league, after the Gas activated the release clause of the goalscoring midfielder.
The former Blues academy product is making a comeback to the team he once played for. When Lakin was nine years old, he enrolled in City’s academy from the Walsall junior setup.
Lakin’s manager, Bruce Sadler, feels that the midfielder began to fulfil his potential while on loan at Sutton and that he fits into the “culture” he is still establishing at the team. He continued, saying that rather than a rebuild, Lakin’s acquisition is part of this summer’s “piece-by-piece” recruitment strategy.
“I’m very happy to have signed Charlie,” Sadler exclaimed. “He’s a player I really want to work with; he’s in good shape, wants to get better, and fits in perfectly with the kind of culture we want to have here.”
“He started to realise the potential I’ve seen in him, had a really good second half of the Sutton season, and scored a lot of goals.”
I’ve known Charlie for a long time because I’ve watched his career grow, and I know he still has a lot of goals to pursue. That’s why I’m thrilled that we were able to fend off competition, as Charlie had received inquiries from almost every division member in the last month, so we’re thrilled to have him on board.
We made it clear before the offseason that we didn’t intend to start from scratch because we already have a solid core group that we’re adding to piece by piece.
Charlie is just another excellent piece that completes the puzzle, so we’ll be strategic in our actions.
Lakin made 11 appearances throughout all competitions after making his debut at Blues as a young player in the Championship in 2018–19; however, in 2021, he permanently moved to Burton. His best season as a Brewer was 2021–2022, when he netted two goals in 28 games for the League One team.
“I’ve had quite a few loan spells in League Two so I know the league well and having that experience is only going to make me come here, hit the ground running and influence the team as much as possible,” the midfield player stated in reference to his transfer.
“I hope to continue my strong performance from Sutton right into the beginning of this season.
As a box-to-box midfielder who enjoys creating and scoring goals but can also help the team defensively, I want to move forward and get into attacking situations. However, I also like to do the dirty work, which I quite love doing.
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