Three Out As Lincoln City Winter Shake-Up Begins

The Imps have bid farewell to three loan players as the January window gets underway.

Dexter Lembikisa, Fin Barbrook and Frankie Okoronkwo have all left the club. Lembikisa’s loan was only short-term anyway, and always intended to finish in January. The other two players have, not unexpectedly, been recalled by their parent clubs.

A message from the club read:

“Everyone at the Imps would like to thank Dexter Lembikisa, Fin Barbrook and Frankie Okoronkwo for their contributions after they returned to their parent clubs.

“Lembikisa’s loan from the Premier League side Wolves concluded after the New Year’s Day game against Huddersfield Town, while Barbrook and Okoronkwo have been recalled by Ipswich Town and Everton respectively.”

Barbook was very much a victim of circumstance. Playing in central midfield, he had Tom Bayliss, a seasoned League One professional, and Conor McGrandles, our standout player this season, to dislodge. Even then, ahead of him on the bench was club-record signing Ivan Varfolomeev, meaning his only real exposure came in the EFL Trophy. He always looked decent in that competition, and will doubtless go back out on loan to a League One or top-end League Two club and do well.

Lembikisa gave us some interest in the World Cup qualifiers, but not much else. With international week often falling during EFL Trophy games, we didn’t see him as much as we’d like. He appeared against Man Utd U21s and did well, but his cameos in the league were fleeting, and rarely did he look entriely comfortable at right back in a flat back four.

I really wanted to like Frankie Okoronkwo, but it just hasn’t really happened for him, and as predicted in yesterday’s transfer window article, he returns to Everton but heads back out on loan to Doncaster Rovers. His minutes were steady, he was often used as an impact sub, and while I never doubted his work rate or application, I don’t think he’s better than what we already have. He missed some good chances during his Imps spell, but we’ll always have Doncaster, a quality header that helped us to a vital three points.

While it is highly unlikely we’ll be bringing three in to replace these players, it wouldn’t be a huge surprise if we added a loan player later in the window. Barbrook has been ‘replaced’ by Dom Jefferies, Okoronkwo by Jack Moylan, and Dexter was always coming in as additional cover. With Josh Honohan already signed, it could be argued the cover is already at the club, and this is the final chapter of the story.