Tremendous But Temporary Talent: The Best Championship Loan Business Ever

Tremendous But Temporary Talent: The Best Championship Loan Business Ever

We’ve seen it countless times before - the endless stream of young talents shipped out on loan moves to clubs across the EFL never seems to slow, and some of the talents that first plied their trade across the top four tiers of English football beggar belief.

On rare occasions, some EFL sides take their loan business to the next level, and end up bringing in a veritable gold mine of talent, signing some of the finest young stars around. Of course, due to the nature of loan deals, these hot prospects could only stay on a temporary basis, but fans of a certain club can look back in the future and think, “Yeah, we helped him become world class.”

Reece James (18) - Chelsea to Wigan Athletic on loan (2018) pic.twitter.com/rzsjpdmcNM

— Transfersthathappened (@actualtransfers) September 20, 2025

There have been numerous examples of this over the years, so I will have to make some seemingly obvious omissions, so apologies if I vex any of you by not including your team (there are plenty of other outlets out there).

But the inclusions in this list should bring plenty of entertainment. Without further ado, let’s get stuck in …

Preston 2022/23 - Troy Parrott, Alvaro Carreras, Liam Delap

The loan signings that inspired this list, the Preston squad of three years ago were absolutely packed to the rafters with talent. Ranging from former Liverpool hotshot Ben Woodburn to proven Championship ballers Emile Riss Jacobsen and Tom Cannon, the Preston squad already had more than enough quality to finish mid-table even without loan signings.

However, the loan signings they did make elevated their squad from good to great. Signing Alavaro Carreras from Man United, Liam Delap from Man City, and Troy Parrott from Spurs, the Lilywhites had inadvertently signed three of 2025’s most hyped footballers all in the same transfer window.

🤝 Our two new loan signings, Álvaro Fernández and Troy Parrott, are now available to sponsor!

Our player sponsorship package offers a fantastic exposure opportunity to you or your business both at Deepdale and online.

➡️ https://t.co/2BhlNirnsO#pnefc pic.twitter.com/vKvRS7m1jQ

— Preston North End FC (@pnefc) July 27, 2022

It is worth noting that none of them were anywhere near the peak of their powers in mid-2022, with Delap on his second successive loan, Parrott on his fourth, and Carreras on his first. In truth, both forwards failed to impress, and it was Carreras who comfortably outshone his more attacking fellow loanees.

Delap would only score once for the club, although in his defence, he only had half a season to get up to speed after signing in January, while Parrott would find the net four times as Tottenham started to lose patience with his lack of development.

Very few would have thought that if they were to fast-forward three and a bit years, Delap would be Chelsea’s preferred starting striker, Carreras Real Madrid’s first-choice left-back, and Troy Parrott one of the deadliest forwards in the Eredivisie, as well as a national hero for Ireland after his hat-trick heroics on Sunday.

Official. Manchester City have decided to recall Liam Delap as he’ll spend the rest of the season at Preston North End after ending his loan at Stoke City 🔵🤝🏻 #MCFC pic.twitter.com/5YyjC0tx4d

— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) January 12, 2023

Amazingly, even with this level of talent at their disposal, Preston could only muster a 12th-place finish, bang in the middle of the pack. Oh, what they would have done to loan all three back again this season…

Derby County 2018/19 - Mason Mount, Harry Wilson, Fikayo Tomori, Scott Carson

When you think of a Championship side dripping in loan quality, the first team that likely pops into your head is Frank Lampard’s Derby side of 2018/19.

Thanks to the Chelsea legend's appointment at the helm, his former club were more than happy to send him the choicest of their youth candidates, which included attacking midfielder Mount and physical centre-back Tomori, while Liverpool sent Harry Wilson their way.

Despite reports to the contrary, Mason Mount and Fikayo Tomori will be lining up against Chelsea at the end of the month for Frank Lampard’s Derby County.

Officially confirmed by the club today. pic.twitter.com/INzPVlaOt7

— Simon Phillips (@siphillipssport) October 22, 2018

These three loanees would prove to be some of the side’s most important players, as the Rams made a surprise push for promotion despite it being Lampard’s first season in management. Wilson bagged 18 goals, while Mount backed him up with a more than respectable 11, and Tomori’s composed presence at the back helped them concede just 54 league goals, the fifth-best total in the league.

Along with regular goals from Martin Waghorn and Jack Marriott up front, and with Tomori teaming up at the back with another Chelsea legend in Ashley Cole, Derby charted a dramatic path to the Championship play-off final, a run which featured a dramatic semi-final tie that no Rams fan will soon forget - Wilson and Mount both got on the scoresheet as a 4-2 second-leg win turned a tie which had a bit of absolutely everything on its head.

Always worth a re-run. Leeds 2 Derby 4. 15th May 2019 #dcfc 🐑🐑🐑🐑 pic.twitter.com/C4MS88Xwjc

— THE OSSIE END #dcfc 🐏🐏🐏 (@TheOssieEnd) December 29, 2024

They would lose 2-1 to Aston Villa in the final, but the performances of the loan trio had not gone unnoticed, and the next season, their career paths changed dramatically. Mount and Tomori were both retained by Chelsea as the Blues battled a transfer embargo, with the youngster vital in managing a fourth-place finish, while Wilson got his first taste of Premier League football with a loan move to Bournemouth.

In the present day, Mount finds himself at Man United, Tomori battling for the Serie A with AC Milan, and Harry Wilson a key player at Fulham, while it is worth noting that Scott Carson, who was the first-choice keeper for Derby that year, retired as a two-time UCL and four-time Premier League winner, having moved to Man City as a backup homegrown option the next year.

Leicester City 2012/13 - Harry Kane, Michael Keane, Jesse Lingard

Onto a trio of England internationals now, or more impressively, a trio of England goalscorers! Back in 2012, Leicester were looking to end a nine-year stint without Premier League football, and pulled out all the stops in a bid to make it happen.

Making just three loan signings, the Foxes ensured that all three came from some of the best youth academies in the land: Harry Kane from Tottenham, and the pairing of Michael Keane and Jesse Lingard from Manchester United.

Throwback to that time Jamie Vardy and Harry Kane were on the bench for Leicester City in the Championship 🤔 pic.twitter.com/pWE9edqFdt

— ESPN UK (@ESPNUK) November 15, 2025

Remarkably, Michael Keane was the only one of them to start regularly at Leicester during their season-long spell there; Lingard made just five appearances across the whole season, and Kane was used as a bench player alongside Jamie Vardy, with Nigel Pearson preferring one of David Nugent or Chris Wood ahead of England’s current number 10.

However, despite the lack of impact provided by their young loanees, Leicester did manage to finish sixth, subsequently qualifying for the play-offs. Unfortunately, in facing Watford in the semi-finals, the Foxes were outfoxed, finding themselves on the wrong end of one of football’s most dramatic moments: “Here’s Hogg … DEEEEENEEEEEYYYYYY!” You know the one.

On this day 11 years ago…

“Here’s Hogg… DEEEENEYYYYYYYYYY!” 🤯pic.twitter.com/XI9r9YqXno

— SPORTbible (@sportbible) May 12, 2024

These days, Michael Keane is a starting centre back for a resurgent Everton team looking to re-establish themselves back in the top half of the Premier League under David Moyes; Lingard currently plays for FC Seoul but still boasts over 200 appearances for Man United and 32 for England and has scored at the World Cup.

And then there is Kane. Had Pearson known the goalscoring animal he would become, Nugent and Wood wouldn’t have had a sniff. England’s record goalscorer, the Bundesliga’s best player, and a frontrunner for next year’s Ballon d’Or – this is surely one of the greatest managerial oversights in history from Pearson.

Nottingham Forest 2010/11 - Aaron Ramsey, Ryan Bertrand, Kris Boyd

Now back to the early 2010s, when the Championship was still known as the Coca Cola Championship (there’s a nostalgia hit for you).

Nottingham Forest were looking to return to the top flight for the first time since 2004, and as a result, no expense was spared in the transfer window when it came to making loan signings. Forest scoured the Premier League for talent looking for more game time, and quickly found some talented candidates.

They settled on season-long spells for Chelsea left-back Ryan Bertrand, Arsenal midfielder Aaron Ramsey and Liverpool defender Paul Konchesky from what was then the Barclays Premier League, while in January, they also managed to acquire Rangers hitman Kris Boyd, who had netted over 100 times for the Scottish giants in just 143 games.

Boyd in particular was seen as a statement signing - despite posting some relatively flat figures for Middlesbrough in the first half of the season, he looked revitalised at Forest, scoring six in just 10 games.

"I had more nights out than games!" 😆

Aaron Ramsey recalls his short loan with Nottingham Forest while he was at Arsenal 💬 pic.twitter.com/yRVCfOpbiV

— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) October 21, 2024

Bertrand and Ramsey were considerably less fortunate. Ramsey only managed three appearances, and while Bertrand appeared a more respectable 19 times, both failed to have the impact many had hoped for. Nonetheless, their presence did help Forest into the play-offs, and it was only against a rampant first-leg performance from Swansea City that ended their promotion hopes.

Considering the lack of game time given to each loanee (Konchesky only made 15 appearances), it was unthinkable what a few of them would go on to achieve later down the line.

The very next year, Ryan Bertrand was the starting left-back as Chelsea won their first-ever Champions League trophy against Bayern Munich in their own backyard, while Aaron Ramsey soon became a regular starter for Arsenal, and would grow to be one of the Gunners’ most important players of the 2010s before sealing a move to Juventus, where he would play alongside Cristiano Ronaldo.

🚨🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 𝐎𝐅𝐅𝐈𝐂𝐈𝐀𝐋 | Ryan Bertrand (34) has retired from football! 👋

He made history by becoming the first player to make his debut in the Champions League final… in the same game he won the trophy with Chelsea in 2012. ✨🏆 pic.twitter.com/Uji21mPWVU

— EuroFoot (@eurofootcom) June 18, 2024

Though Boyd would not win another piece of silverware for the rest of his career, his short but sweet stint at Forest will also be remembered fondly, with it being arguably the last prolific showing of his career.

Final Verdict

The loan moves listed prove that the Championship has been privy to the early stages of some of the finest footballing careers around. A vital way of determining whether Premier League talent can make it all the way to the top, the Championship, as well as the divisions below, is crucial to the process of homegrown production.

With England internationals both past and present taking almost identical routes to the second tier in order to develop their craft, we are reminded once again of just why English football is the best oin the world.