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...
FLW' s Queens Park Rangers fan pundit has urged the club to pursue the loan signing of Louie Barry in the January window, after recent claims of their interest, but has admitted that the Hoops could lose out to higher-placed sides if he does move on loan to the Championship next month.
Stockport County forward Barry has been one of the standout players in the third-tier this season on loan from Aston Villa, with 14 goals in 19 league outings so far this term to help the Hatters to fifth place in their promotion push, as well as another goal in the EFL Trophy to take his overall tally to 15.
His impressive form has seen him earn admirers from both the Championship and Premier League ahead of the January window, with recent reports stating that the Villans are set to cut his time at Edgeley Park short and send him to a second-tier side for the second-half of the campaign.
QPR have been named as an interested club in the last few days, but are set to face tough competition from a myriad of fellow Championship sides for the 21-year-old's signature, including some clubs in the promotion race, so they could conceivably miss out on Barry next month.
QPR fan pundit unsure of Hoops' pulling power in race for Louie Barry
Louie Barry
Barry joined Stockport from Villa on loan in League Two last summer, and bagged nine times in 21 fourth-tier games to fire the Hatters into League One, albeit in an injury-hit campaign after suffering a serious hamstring injury, and he rejoined the club on a temporary deal once again in August.
His impressive form this season has already seen him win both the League One Player of the Month and EFL Young Player of the Month so far, and now he looks set to play at a higher level from January onwards.
Louie Barry 2024/25 League One statistics (SofaScore)
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Shots on target per game
Key passes per game
Successful dribbles per game
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Middlesbrough, Sheffield Wednesday and Derby County have all been named in the race for the 21-year-old's services over the last month, and now QPR have been linked with interest in his signature by TEAMtalk, alongside the likes of Sheffield United, Coventry City, and Stoke City.
Barry would be a real coup for Rangers as they look to stave off the drop in the Championship this season, and our Hoops fan pundit, Louis Moir, has detailed his excitement at the club being linked to a player of his calibre on loan, but is unsure as to if they will get the deal done over higher-placed Championship clubs, after we asked him if would it be hard to fend off that type of competition in January.
“I’m glad that we are interested in Louie Barry, because he is certainly a player that has, I think, developed quite quickly over a small period of time,” Louis told FLW.
“I think this season especially, he’s just kicked on at Stockport, and he looks a different level. He shouldn’t really be playing in that league.
“He’s sort of similar to Karamoko Dembele, in terms of still being really young, yet a few years ago he was touted to be one of the best upcoming youngsters.
“His career maybe hasn’t hit those heights, and it’s taken a bit more time to develop and show his ability, and that is exactly what Barry is doing now.
“He does remind me of Dembele in that aspect, and I could certainly see us being interested.
“Barry could be that player that fits the bill with the way we want to do recruitment now. You could see him being one of those players that is strong when it comes to the data and statistical side of things.
“It’s not a surprise that us and other clubs are possibly interested in him. He would be very good, very exciting, and exactly the other option that we need up front, or across the front-line.
“Obviously, if there are other Championship clubs who are having much better seasons than us, and they’re interested in him, then I think we’ll find it hard to get him.
“Aston Villa might think that when they loaned us Tim Iroegbunam, he did really well for us, so they could see it in that way, or it could come down to the player’s decision.
“Villa might send him to where they think he’s best suited, so you never know.
“I’d be really excited if we were to sign him on loan, that’s for sure.”
Louie Barry would be a welcome addition to QPR's lacking frontline
R's boss Marti Cifuentes only has three out-and-out strikers on his books as it stands, and it was definitely an oversight not to add more firepower to his attacking ranks in the summer, given his side's poor record in front of goal up to now.
QPR are the joint-second-lowest scorers in the Championship so far, with just 18 strikes in 19 games, and while they have found some form in front of goal in recent weeks, the likes of Michael Frey and Zan Celar are currently sidelined, so additions like Barry are very much needed next month.
The 21-year-old is versatile, as he can play either at left-wing or as a number nine, and would certainly suit Cifuentes' quick, counter-attacking style of play that has not quite yielded the results they have wanted in this campaign.
Queens Park Rangers manager Marti Cifuentes will hope to hold onto Paal
His form in League One has made him hot property ahead of January though, and the R's being able to compete financially, or offer the same chances of success this season as the likes of Sheffield United or Middlesbrough, is unlikely, but they may well be able to guarantee more game-time than those clubs, which is what Villa will be after more than anything else.
It remains to be seen whether Barry will end up at Loftus Road for the second-half of the season, but if he did, it would be a real coup for the Hoops in their battle to push up the table after a poor start, and he would surely guarantee goals, based off his exploits in the third-tier.
Marti Cifuentes x Michael Frey x Zan Celar Related
["Need to address" - QPR club chiefs urged to solve Marti Cifuentes issue in January](https://footballleagueworld.co.uk/qpr-new-striker-marti-cifuentes-michael-frey-zan-celar-january/ ""Need to address" - QPR club chiefs urged to solve Marti Cifuentes issue in January")
We spoke to our resident QPR pundit to get his take on what Marti Cifuentes will demand this January.