Paul Lambert expects Danny Rowe to be back with Ipswich Town this summer but is unsure what the future holds for Tom Adeyemi.
Rowe was part of the Lincoln side which won promotion to League One on Saturday, the same day the Blues were relegated to the third tier, having impressed during his loan stay with Danny Cowley’s side.
“Danny’s still our player,” Lambert said of Rowe, who has scored four goals in 14 games during a second loan with the Imps.
“He’s helped them and done well but he’s still our player and I expect to see him back here in pre-season.
“He had some good moments and was then going to start against QPR at Loftus Road (on Boxing Day) but wasn’t well. We thought we needed to get him games.
“He did well for me and has done well for Lincoln, so the door’s not shut on him by any stretch of the imagination.
“I expect to see him back here, same as the other lads.
“Jordan Roberts has not really featured at Lincoln, sadly, while Luke (Woolfenden) has done well on loan at Swindon.
“They will all come back into the equation and I’ll have a chat with the lads at the end of the season.”
Adeyemi made a long-awaited return to action in the Under 23s’ 4-1 home loss to Nottingham Forest on Monday evening, with the midfielder not featuring for the senior side since October 2017.
He’s out of contract this summer, with Lambert not being drawn on what the future holds for a player who was a youngster during the Town boss’s time at Norwich.
“For any footballer it’s difficult when you’re not playing games because you need games to show what you can do,” Lambert said.
“He came through the game on Monday ok. There’s no rush for me, his health is the most important thing. I don’t know what’s happening with him in the summer.
“Unfortunately for Tom he hasn’t had games for a long time before even we came in.
“I had him at Norwich a hell of a long time ago but people move and people change.
“His injury has come at a time when he’s wondering what happens to him, what I’m thinking and that kind of thing. All of those things will go through his head and I understand that.
“But it’s difficult in this moment to say whether he’s going to be here or not.”
Another senior player out of contract this summer is goalkeeper Dean Gerken, with Lambert revealing a decision has not been made on the stopper’s future.
“That will become clear I think,” Lambert said when asked about Gerken.
“Deano’s played well whenever we’ve needed him and has trained well, too.
“I can’t compliment the two of them (Bartosz Bialkowski and Gerken) high enough for how well they have done.
“I’ll speak to them towards the end (of the season).
“There haven’t been any real decisions made on things at the moment because it’s all very raw.”
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here