What Can City Fans Expect If Rob Street Signs?

Credit Graham Burrell

Reports coming out of Cheltenham this morning suggest the Imps have agreed a fee with the Robins for the services of striker Rob Street.

Yesterday, Jon Palmer broke the news that the Imps were making a move for the striker, and that now looks like moving closer to becoming a reality.

With that in mind, we have spoken briefly to Abi Harding, a writer for The Real EFL, to get a feel for Street. The 22-year-old has a seemingly low goals-to-games ratio, but he did win Goal of the Month in November. It’s also important to note that he was in a poor Cheltenham side for the first few months of the campaign and then suffered an injury at the tail end of the season.

“He’s a good player that I am gutted to be losing,” said Abi, when I asked her about Street this morning. “Although he spent some of last season unfortunately injured, he’s a hard-working player, can finish and far better than what the stats say.”

“He’s got a great work ethic and can certainly win a header. He’s got time on his side as well, being just 22. Looks like Michael Flynn wants a clear-out at Cheltenham.”

It sounds very much like Street could be a striker we’re hoping to develop – it’s worth remembering Ben House came to us with a less-than-spectacular scoring record, but has proven to be a superb acquisition. However, some supporters might be a little concerned about the news of an injury, which ruled Street out from February.

‘He fell over the ball at Derby and twisted his knee,” added Abi. “Looked painful. He also suffered multiple conclusions last season around the winter period, which kept him out.”

The interesting angle is the fee. There will be no details emerge, either now or after; it’ll be undisclosed, but Abi’s valuation is very interesting.

“I don’t know how much Lincoln would be willing to pay but I think the general consensus is a good six-figure fee. Will Goodwin went for £400,000. I’d like at least £300,000, but then again, I’m not David Bloxham (Cheltenham chairman), so who knows?”

Whilst that fee sounds much more than I’d imagine we would bid, there’s certainly a feeling that the stats don’t tell the full picture with Rob Street. These days, a centre forward does much more than score goals, as Ben House has shown, and if we are going to play two up top, then a Ben House alternative is something we definitely need, as none of our other strikers have a similar profile.

It will be interesting to see how the next couple of days develop.