10 Premier League players who could prove useful Championship loanees

Serge Gnabry (Arsenal)

Born to an Ivorian father and German mother, Gnabry has represented Germany at various youth levels. A string of exciting displays helped him make 19 appearances for the Gunners after a promising breakthrough, but an injury in last season’s Champions League means his only appearances this season have been for Arsenal's under-21 side.

His recovery would be helped with more game time, but vying for a place alongside Olivier Giroud, Danny Welbeck, Alexis Sanchez and Theo Walcott will make that difficult. And in the absence of that, the fiery young German could give a Championship side a timely injection of quality before the season's end.

Kwesi Appiah (Crystal Palace)

Ghana international Appiah hasn’t appeared too much for Palace since he joined them in 2012 from Margate. Instead, he's been sent on a string of loans, with his two spells at Cambridge United proving most fruitful. His efforts were rewarded with a first call-up for Ghana in their provisional squad for the Africa Cup of Nations this year. He impressed, making the cut for their 26-man squad and playing in four games for Avram Grant’s side as they reached the final before losing on penalties to the Ivory Coast. His standout performance came in the 3-0 win over Guinea, in which he helped set up the first goal for Christian Atsu before doubling the lead himself. No surprise, then, that he was awarded man-of-the-match. 

Steve Sidwell (Stoke)

After leaving Stoke on a free following his release by Fulham, the experienced midfielder has made only nine Premier League appearances for the Potters this season. A knee injury has hampered his campaign, but having warmed the bench for four games straight he may well prefer getting some minutes under his belt elsewhere. The ex-Chelsea man has admitted that competition for places is harder than he anticipated.

Jose Angel Pozo (Man City)

A former Real Madrid youth player, Pozo moved to Manchester City in 2012 with his younger brother Iker in a deal worth £2.4 million. An impressive first campaign followed, but an ankle injury disrupted his second. Since then he has flourished under the guidance of Patrick Vieira in City’s Elite Development Squad, and was promoted to the first team earlier this season due to injuries to both Sergio Aguero and Stevan Jovetic.

His debut came in the 7-0 thrashing of Sheffield Wednesday in the League Cup, a game in which he scored the sixth goal, and it was followed by a first Premier League appearance against Sunderland and first league start against Leicester after Edin Dzeko was injured in the warm-up.

Aged only 19, Pozo’s goalscoring, pace and technique have seen him shine for City and Spain’s various youth levels, so it is no wonder that Manuel Pellegrini’s side have high hopes for him.

TALENTSPOTTER Meet Manchester City's Spanish academy sensation who's next in line to succeed

Andreas Christensen (Chelsea)

Jose Mourinho’s man-of-the-match in the League Cup final didn't even play in it. But the Portuguese insisted that Chelsea wouldn't have even got there without Christensen's performance against Shrewsbury in the fourth round. Clearly the young Dane is highly rated by the Chelsea coaching staff. Naturally a centre-back, he has been trusted to play at right-back this season in his two games for the west Londoners. Still only 18, Christensen has represented Denmark's youth teams from U16 level and is now a regular in the U21 side. Chelsea’s loan policy has allowed the likes of Patrick Bamford, Lewis Baker and Nathaniel Chalobah to leave for experience elsewhere this season, and their great Dane at the back could be next. 

Jonas Gutierrez (Newcastle)

It was a welcome sight to see 'Jonas' on a Newcastle team-sheet again, when the Argentine was named in the squad for the 1-0 win against Villa in February having won his battle against cancer. And after featuring in the Magpies' last three games off the bench, Gutierrez will be looking to get back to full fitness with more game time soon. He's been involved in John Carver's short-term plans, but a loan move to the Championship might be beneficial for both him and Newcastle in the long run. 

Harry Winks (Tottenham)

Winks is a product of Spurs' thriving youth academy, and his outstanding performances during the 2013/14 season have earned him numerous first-team call-ups, including being on the bench for three games in March and April. His first appearance came in the 1-0 win over FK Partizan in the Europa League this season, but he is yet to make his league debut. A lifelong Spurs fan, he models his game on players like Xavi and Zinedine Zidane and likes to create chances for the forwards in the final third.

Nick Powell (Man United)

Following his impressive performances in midfield for Wigan last season in the Championship and Europa League, Powell earned himself a loan move to Premier League Leicester. But his time in the East Midlands was shortlived. After only a handful of appearances for the Foxes, Nigel Pearson saw fit to terminate his contract early having reportedly been unimpressed with his commitment to training. In order to fulfil Sir Alex Ferguson's prediction that he'll one day be an England international, the former Crewe Alexandra starlet needs competitive playing time to once again prove why he was so sought after in the first place.

Cristian Gamboa (West Brom)

A stalwart of Costa Rica’s impressive run to the quarter-finals of the 2014 World Cup, Gamboa signed for West Brom from Norwegian giants Rosenborg in August, with the Baggies having beaten off strong competition to land his signature. However, despite making 14 appearances this season, the 25-year-old has fallen out of favour with Tony Pulis. Though naturally a right-back, Gamboa is versatile, and both his attacking and defensive qualities make him capable of playing in midfield too. At The Hawthorns he's got Craig Dawson and Andre Wisdom to compete with, though, and a brief stint outside the top flight could help him become more accustomed to the English style of play.

Dan Potts (West Ham)

The son of former West Ham skipper Steve, Potts made his Premier League debut in the 2012/13 season and has made 13 appearances for the Hammers to date. The 20-year-old defender made his debut aged 17 in a Championship game against Burnley at Upton Park, and has regularly captained both the under-18s and under-21 sides. Loan spells at Colchester United and Portsmouth followed, and now back in the development squad he'll be looking to gain minutes elsewhere as he continues his push to become a West Ham favourite like his father. Potts has been capped by England at U18, U19 and U20 level, after one appearance for the United States' U20s back in 2011.