Charlton Athletic centre-forward Connor Wickham has revealed that he has yet to hold talks with the club about his future, with his deal set to expire in the summer.
Wickham scored the all-important goal on Saturday as the Addicks finally confirmed safety in League One for another season. The former Sunderland striker controlled a chipped pass by captain George Dobson, swivelled his body in the box and lashed his shot into the bottom corner to take the lead at the Abbey Stadium.
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Having gone into half-time one goal to the good, Nathan Jones’ men caved five minutes after the interval as Cambridge United equalised through Macauley Bonne. The game would end 1-1, although Charlton have now extended their unbeaten run to 13 matches in England’s third tier and could end the season undefeated, with just two fixtures remaining.
Wickham moved to the South London club at the beginning of March following a successful two-week training period under Jones. The ex-Premier League frontman hadn’t been contracted to another club since his four-month stint at Cardiff City last season.
Nevertheless, Jones took a gamble by signing the 31-year-old on a deal until the end of the season and Saturday’s goal to earn a point showed the benefits of this decision.
However, with his future uncertain once more, Wickham has admitted that he’s just happy to be playing football again, claiming that he hasn’t held talks with Charlton Athletic about possibly extending his deal beyond the season [quotes via London News Online]:
“I’m really happy not just to be here but to be playing football again and scoring goals. If that’s what gets me something for next season, then that is what gets me something for next season. All I can do is what I can control. That’s my main focus at the moment.
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“It’s an exciting time for the club. For me, I’ll address that when that conversation arises. We haven’t had that conversation yet. It’s a very exciting time for Charlton. They do have the capabilities to go up. If I’m part of that, it’ll be something we’ll sit down and discuss when that time comes up.”
Writer’s View
It’s still too early to tell whether Charlton Athletic will want to keep Wickham on for another year after this season ends since he has made just three appearances so far for the club. However, it may not be the worst option in the world.
Alfie May is undoubtedly the club’s first-choice centre-forward but there may be interest in the prolific goalscorer from clubs in the Championship in the summer. If May and Wickham both leave, Jones will need to sign two centre-forwards which is far from ideal.
