Hibs struggler’s difficult start addressed as major doubts cast on wisdom of Easter Road transfer
Hibs on loan striker Nathan Lowe had endured a difficult start to life at Easter Road.
Hibs striker Nathan Lowe’s has been told his early-season struggles at the club evidence the gulf in quality between the Scottish Premiership and the English second tier.
Lowe, 21, joined the club on a season-long loan from Stoke City in the summer, but has struggled to make an impact at Easter Road, scoring just twice in all competitions. Mirroring his difficult loan spells at Wycombe Wanderers and Stockport County last season, sections of the Hibs support are far from convinced by the imposing forward.
However, former Stoke and Reading striker Dave Kitson believes his difficulties in the capital are in part due to a major difference in style and standard with the EFL Championship, with the 46-year-old questioning whether Lowe’s decision to move to Hibs was a wise one.
“Going up to Scotland was never going to be easy [for Lowe],” said Kitson. “It's two completely different styles of football. Scottish football to English Championship football is night and day. The Championship at the moment is unbelievably competitive. Virtually the whole league has been in the Premier League at some point and come down.
“Twenty years ago, paying £3 million for a striker was a lot. Now £30 million doesn't make anyone bat an eyelid. It's so competitive, which is why culture can be a real difference maker. You can't turn up anywhere, like away at Millwall, and just assume you're going to win. Any team can beat anyone on their day. It's so much harder than it used to be.”
The 21-year-old scored 18 goals in the 2024/25 season for EFL League Two club Walsall, and declared he intended to end the season as the league’s top scorer, saying: “I am by no means am I the finished article and I won't be at the end of this loan. But every season I go into, my aim is to be the top goalscorer in the league. Hopefully I can add to my tally significantly here.”
However, Lowe has scored just one league goal for Hibs this season, and his progress has now been stalled further due to injury. He hasn’t played for the club since the 1-0 defeat to Dundee United on October 10 because of a stress fracture.
Head coach Marink Reedijk revealed earlier this week that he expects to be without his services for an indefinite period and, with his loan spell not going to plan so far, former Stoke favourite Kitson believes he will be experiencing a dose of reality after his ambitious pre-season claims.
“Signing for Celtic or Rangers wasn't really an option for me,” Kitson told Lyllo Casino. “But thinking back, when you look at Celtic and Rangers back then, they had players like Henrik Larsson and Chris Sutton and before that Brian Laudrup, and Paul Gascoigne. That was proper quality. It's hard for them up there now because there isn't Premier League money. It's a tough league to go and prove yourself, especially if you're a young kid going on loan thinking you're going to rip up trees. That path is really difficult to tread these days.”
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