Josh Cullen has been turning plenty of head this season at Charlton, yet scoring goals is one thing the Irish international is yet to be associated with, until now.
The 23-year-old midfielder scored a vital last-minute equaliser for the Addicks on Saturday against West Brom, with Cullen grabbing a 94th-minute penalty to ensure the points were shared at the Hawthorns.
It was just the latest eye-catching performance from Cullen this season, who has been rumoured by the likes of Hammers News as a player Manuel Pellegrini is considering bringing back to the London Stadium in January when the midfielder is legible to be brought back to West Ham.
Indeed, there is good reason to believe that the Irish international could be a solid addition to the West Ham squad heading into the second-half of the season, yet a player performing well out on-loan in one half of the season only the be recalled by their parent club and underused is a tale that is all too familiar in the Premier League, and one that the Irons should look to steer clear from.
Nathan Ake is the prime example of this tale, as the Dutch international was sent out on-loan to Bournemouth in the 2015/16 season.
As stats from Transfermarkt show, the centre-back was enjoying a decent amount of first-team football with Eddie Howe’s side, playing 12 games in all competitions for the Cherries before being recalled by Antonio Conte at Chelsea in January, where he only made five more appearances for the rest of the campaign.
Cullen could fall into a similar trap of permanently being a bench player at West Ham, and throwing away half a season’s worth of football with Charlton, who have been impressive in the Championship this season, will be one way for the Irish midfielder to severally halt his development as a player.
