£10m-rated Stoke striker a wanted man after inflicting maximum damage on Portsmouth

Now the striker could be about to give current employers Stoke City a huge headache.

The 21-year-old’s four-goal exploits during the Blues’ 6-1  midweek humiliation at the hands of the Potters on October 2 catapulted Cannon up the Championship goalscoring charts and reminded those keen on his services over the summer what they missed out on.

The losnee also helped Narcis Pelach pick up his first win as Stoke boss after he replaced Steven Schumacher last month following an indifferent start to the new season.

That ‘indifferent start’ still sees the Potters sit five points and six places better off than Pompey, who remain without a win this campaign. But Cannon might not be a player who sees the season out with the Staffordshire outfit, who followed up their win against the Blues with a goalless draw at Swansea.

That’s because it’s been reported that Cannon’s parent club, Leicester, have a recall option in January and are keen to cash in on a player whom they bought from Everton for £7.5m in the summer of 2023.

According to The Sun’s Alan Nixon, the Foxes value the Republic of Ireland international at £10m, with West Brom and Sheffield United reportedly keen on landing the former Preston North End loanee.

That could potentially hamper Stoke’s hopes of staying away from relegation trouble this season. It could also spell further bad news for Pompey, with John Mousinho’s side due to travel to both the Hawthorns and Bramall Lane in the new year.

Another run-in with Cannon on the road is the last thing they’ll want given the freedom the striker was given to inflict maximum pain on the Blues prior to the international break.

Check out our latest episode of Pompey Talk here.

By then, though, hopefully Pompey will have their own talisman back fit and firing, with Colby Bishop currently unavailable due to heart surgery in August.

The Blues will also be keen to welcome back current top scorer Callum Lang and Kusini Yengi sooner rather than later, with both front men absent in recent weeks through their respective groin issues.

Pompey return to action on Saturday with a trip to third-from-bottom QPR.