What Has Happened To Walsall FC?

Anyone who watches League Two will have seen the gradual fall off that Walsall FC have suffered since the January transfer window closed. At the peak of their season so far, The Saddlers were 13 points clear at the top of the league, however since their fixture against MK Dons on the 18th of January, they have won just 3 out of their last 13 games, picking up total of just 14 points out of a possible 39, reducing their lead at the top to just 3 points, with powerhouse Bradford hot on their tail.

Well it’s all ever so terribly polite and British at the top of League Two at the moment, isn’t it?

Walsall to Bradford: “After you, I insist”

Bradford to Walsall: “No no please, I wouldn’t want to intrude”#Saddlers
— Tom Marlow (@tommymarlow) March 15, 2025

Losing Lowe

Over the last few years, Walsall have relied heavily on loans from clubs in higher divisions with none shining brighter than Stokes Nathan Lowe, in his short time at Walsall earlier this season the youngster scored 18 goals across 30 appearances in League and Cup Competitions. This level of output often pulled the team through difficult games and securing vital points enabling the Saddlers to race into the automatic promotion places after just 4 games and helped with maintaining their position ever since. The last game that Lowe featured in was 5-1 Home victory against Tranmere Rovers, scoring the fifth in the 80th minute, Lowe was then recalled to parent club Stoke where he has made just 8 appearances for the Potters, scoring 1 goal.

Never fall in love with a loan player 🥺

Enjoy all FIFTEEN of @stokecity's Nathan Lowe's goals from his prolific loan spell with @WFCOfficial 🔥#EFL | #SkyBetLeagueTwo pic.twitter.com/Cpp4t55Lsp
— Sky Bet League Two (@SkyBetLeagueTwo) January 13, 2025

Lack of squad depth

The second of Walsall’s issues falls in their lack of depth regarding quality players within the squad, the squad sat at the top of the league consists of a majority of players from last season where the side finished 11th, this means that unless they invest heavily following their potential promotion to League One they are almost doomed to fail. Given their reliance on loans during their time in League Two, it is likely that this trend will continue however improving their standard from looking at youngsters from Championship teams, moving their sights to Premier League loanees as seen by Stockport this season, taking on Aston Villa’s Louie Barry who became one of the best players netting 15 goals and still sitting as the third top scorer in the league before being recalled and loaned to Hull City during the January window.

Future Options

If the Saddlers were to be promoted, they may potentially look at making a move for Nathan Lowe on a permanent transfer however a strong alternative option could be Tottenham's Jamie Donelly who is currently on loan at Leyton Orient and acting as their backup striker so if he is looking for more gametime, Walsall may be the perfect option. They may also look to additional players who are currently on loan in League One such as Aston Villa’s Josh Feeney who is currently on loan at Shrewsbury Town in order to strengthen their defence, a current weak point in Matt Sadlers team. However, using the loans system to strengthen a squad is currently not a sustainable model as if a player begins to shine, they may end up being recalled by their parent club, this would put Walsall back in the situation that they are in now, making looking at permanent transfers a more sustainable option, they may also look to try and sign a variety of free agents who have prior experience playing in either the Championship or League One.

What will happen now?

Personally, I believe that Walsall will still have what it takes to finish within the automatic promotion places, however there is a high chance that like many promoted teams they will struggle to remain in League One without proper investment and a plan for the future. However, the future will still hold great things for the Saddlers given their prior League One pedigree, they will always look to get back to where many believe they belong since their relegation from League One in 2019.