Sheffield Wednesday will have concern at Lincoln City news | OneFootball

There is a danger that a Bailey Cadamarteri’s time at Lincoln City could fizzle out.

There is a danger that a Sheffield Wednesday loanee’s time at Lincoln City could fizzle out.

Bailey Cadamarteri has five league goals to his name at the Imps, with three more coming in the EFL Trophy. However, all of those came before the end of 2024.

Since a strike in a 2-0 victory over Reading in December, the 19-year-old has not found the back of the net and has seen himself increasingly left out of the squad. Injury troubles have been a feature of the latter part of his spell in Lincolnshire, while the early promise he showed has begun to dissipate.

Current injury setback for Sheffield Wednesday youngster

Cadamarteri is currently on the sidelines at the LNER Stadium, missing their 5-0 demolition of Bristol Rovers with a groin issue. Head coach Michael Skubala was quizzed after that game, and said that the slight injury could be resolved ahead of Lincoln’s next game, when they entertain Exeter City on Saturday, March 22.

He was injured early on in the new year, and was forced out of the Imps team as a result. That may have been a factor in his draught of playing minutes since returning, as other players had stepped up in the intervening games.

The experienced former international striker James Collins signed for Lincoln in January, and has stamped his place in City’s forward line. The ex-Derby County man became the fifth recognised striker at Sincil Bank, with Tyler Walker shunted to the side thanks to recurring long-term injuries.

Academy duo Jovon Makama and Freddie Draper have each played their part over recent months, and have been featuring more consistently, with Ben House pulled back into midfield at times. Collins has found five goals already at Lincoln, with Cadamarteri seeing his chances of a return to the starting line-up seemingly lessened.

A Lincoln City loan spell that could fizzle out

Cadamarteri showed signs of being a quality League One striker in the first few months of his time in Lincoln. He was pacey and added an electricity to the Imps forward line at a point when it desperately needed it.

Despite early displays that hit the mark, the Sheffield Wednesday youngster could now be on the back burner. Perhaps, with the knowledge that Cadamarteri will not be at Lincoln next season, and the chase for the play-offs firmly over, Skubala and his team are looking to prioritise options that have a long-term future at the club.

That is not to say that the Owls’ star will be neglected at the LNER Stadium, as Lincoln have a deservedly impressive track-record of helping loanees onto the next level in their careers.

Joe Taylor was an example of that last season, with current Tottenham Hotspur winger Brennan Johnson and Aston Villa hot-shot Morgan Rogers other sterling cases from further back.

Cadamarteri will have learned something from his time at the Imps, and even if injuries and selection decisions are looking to have cut the fuse on what was promising to be an exciting loan spell.

However, it will be a concern for Danny Rohl's side that their young star has not excelled over recent months. Loans are there for young players to develop, gaining valuable game time and coming back as more experienced professionals. But, Cadamarteri has not managed much of that as of late.

For him, a Lincoln loan-spell has not lived up to the hype, and he will return to Hillsborough not too much better off than when he left last summer when it comes to exposure. It would have been a wasted opportunity on the whole.