JAYDEN STOCKLEY wants to make his loan move to Charlton permanent this summer after rediscovering his lethal scoring touch.
The striker, 27, had an incredible one-in-two career goals-to-starts ratio when he left Exeter for Preston North End almost two-and-a-half years ago in a £750,000 deal.
But he found himself unable to get a regular run of starts under Alex Neil although he still scored nine league goals from 21 starts – but he made a total of 44 Championship sub appearances.
Yet since moving to the Addicks in January he has fired eight goals in 19 starts.
Today he hopes to shoot Charlton into the play-offs – although they need Portsmouth and Oxford to slip up.
Stockley said: “That run of games at Preston never came unfortunately.
“I scored in back-to-back matches against Sheffield Wednesday and Nottingham Forest then found myself back on the bench for Brentford.
“To be fair to Alex Neil, I learned a lot from him tactically. He was very meticulous in his planning of games.
“I feel for managers – they go out to win a game of football.
“They don’t go to upset people or do things viciously. They’re under a lot of pressure. I don’t hold a grudge about it.
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“I back my ability and just feel I should’ve played a lot more.
“But he brought me to the club and gave me the chance to play Championship football. It cuts both ways.”
Stockley has one year left on his contract in the North West and would like to move to South East London.
He said: “It’s up in the air at the moment. I don’t know what fees are circling around and they don’t even know who their manager is going to be next season.
“What I can say is I absolutely am loving my time here.
“And this hopefully isn’t the end of my time playing for Charlton.
“If it works for everyone, I would love it. I feel I have so much to give and these are my prime years.”
Charlton is his 14th different club – although nine of them were loan spells while he was a young player coming through the ranks at Bournemouth.
But after moving permanently from the Cherries to Aberdeen to Exeter then to Preston, he wants to put down roots – and South East London is a perfect home for him and his family.
He said: “I’ve always looked for that club where I could stay and become a real name.
“I’m getting to that age now where I want to give my peak years to that team.
“My partner and I have two children – a five-year-old and two-year-old. They’ve spent a lot of time away from grandparents and other family members – it’s been tough.
“I don’t want them all moving around too much – but in football you often have to understand that the best choice isn’t always the best fit in terms of location.
“You only get one career so you have to balance a lot of things.”
But Stockley has been impressed with Charlton under the new ownership of Thomas Sandgaard and management of Nigel Adkins, who took over from Lee Bowyer after he left for Birmingham.
The Danish owner wants to take the club from League One to the Premier League – a journey that Adkins enjoyed while in charge of Southampton.
And Stockley said: “It’s not until you’re down here that you realise what a very big club Charlton are.
“I love the training ground, I love the area. The stadium is incredible too.
“It’s been disappointing not to experience playing in front of fans – I did as a visiting player. Hopefully the Accrington game won’t be the last time that the fans see me in their shirt.
“Nigel has come in and the lads have taken to him straight away.
“On a personal level, he has been great. His demeanour and the way he works is something I’ve been looking at for a long time.
“His communication skills are great. Some managers have lacked that human touch. I have found that sometimes during my career.
“It’s nice for a manager to talk to you, be honest with you and tell you what he wants and expects.
“And give clear instructions of what he wants and I think that brings out the best in individuals, especially me.”
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Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
