Charlton Athletic: Worrying Miles Leaburn claim issued - Chelsea & Brentford interest may never return | OneFootball

Once wanted by Premier League clubs, Leaburn has had a turbulent last year-and-a-half with the Addicks

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

With the surname he has being synonymous with Charlton Athletic from previous decades, Miles Leaburn always had a lot of promise to live up to - and he was showing it regularly until disaster struck in November 2023.

The son of ex-Addicks striker Carl, who played over 350 times for the club between 1987 and 1998, Leaburn linked up with the south London outfit in 2019 after his departure from Chelsea, and three years later he would sign his first professional deal.

Making his senior debut at the age of 18 at the start of the 2022-23 season, Leaburn junior scored on his first ever appearance in a League One clash with Accrington Stanley, with his first full campaign as a pro seeing him find the back of the net 13 times in all competitions.

Proving to be a nightmare for defenders due to his towering 6ft 7in height, as well as his unique combination of strength and pace for such a tall forward, Leaburn was expected to be even better in 2023-24 - until a hamstring injury in November 2023 ended up sidelining the youngster for nearly a whole calendar year.

Miles Leaburn prediction issued with injury issues potentially set to hamper Charlton Athletic striker

Prior to his season-ending hamstring problem, Leaburn was being tracked by Premier League clubs, including Brentford and ironically Chelsea - the club who had released him four years prior.

It was reported by the South London Press that both clubs were weighing up January moves for the powerhouse, but those plans had to be shelved due to the seriousness of the injury - one that Leaburn only returned to first-team action from in October 2024.

Having managed to keep himself relatively fit and scoring 10 goals from 32 outings, Leaburn had been showing promise again, albeit not consistently, but a training injury last week to his quad muscle is set to cause further setbacks for the 21-year-old, with a trip to the specialist pencilled in.

This latest issue could be a stumbling block for Leaburn moving up the divisions if Charlton do not get promoted at the end of the campaign, and when pressed as to whether his stints on the treatment table will prevent the striker from making a Premier League career out for himself, FLW's Charlton fan pundit Sam White believes that it's going to likely be a hindrance.

"Injuries are definitely going to stop Leaburn from reaching his true potential," Sam told FLW.

"He's been out quite a lot of this season and some of last, which has ironically probably enabled us to hold on to him, as being injured he either hasn't picked up the interest that he probably should've got, or the money that has been offered for him has been lower due to the injuries, and obviously we can turn those ones down.

"Had be been fit, playing and doing well, obviously the offers would've been coming in as higher bids, and that would've been a lot harder for Charlton to turn down.

"It's frustrating because he is good coming off the bench and gives us a different type of attack, but the last five or six games he's played, he hasn't really done anything. He's been quite poor and inconsistent - whether that's due to him having an injury and this has come out at the same time, or if he just hasn't been on top form, it's hard to know.

"So, it's frustrating, but I'm more concerned about the lack of fire-power we have on the bench, especially going into a very tight run-in.

"However, presumably Miles Leaburn might be back for the last game or two and then the play-offs, which hopefully will coincide with his performances getting so much better."

Miles Leaburn injury struggles could stop a big summer transfer from happening - Charlton Athletic would miss out on windfall

Having showed intermittent promise now since July 2022, Leaburn is still one of the hottest prospects in the EFL - it is just a shame that injuries appear to be getting the better of him.

Leaburn also had ankle troubles in his debut season and also prior to his hamstring injury in 2023 as well, which may have been brought on by his ever-growing frame - having reached 6ft 7in now, there will be hopes that his spurt has stopped.

It was little surprise when it emerged there was Premier League interest in Autumn 2023, given Leaburn's unique skillset for such a tall player, but you would imagine top flight outfits would now find it a risk to pay millions for the forward - especially this coming summer if his quad issue is a serious one.

Given his contract expires next summer though, Leaburn could be a gamble worth taking for someone though, as he's likely not going to cost as much as he would have done a couple of seasons ago - if Charlton are promoted though, the Championship could be the perfect platform for a fully-fit Charlton number 11 to shine.