One of the intake of 2011 who seemed to take longer than most to settle was Bolton born Dale Stephens.

Stephens partner gave birth soon after he arrived at The Valley and he also required surgery to tidy up an ongoing ankle problem.

Stephens first came to the attention of Charlton fans in early April, 2011. The classy midfielder was on loan at St Mary’s from Oldham and playing a prominent part in Southampton’s promotion surge.

It was a routine victory for the Saints that night, with Stephens outstanding until crocked by Jose Semedo.

Dale came desperately close to joining Aston Villa on transfer deadline day last August but the two clubs failed to agree a fee.

It has emerged that Stephens is the top summer transfer target for Huddersfield. With just a year left on his contract, the Addicks would not receive anything like the £2.5million they were asking for a year ago.

So far Stephens has made 56 starts in all competitions for Charlton plus 4 substitute appearances, scoring 6 goals.

Chris Powell seems keen to reshape his midfield and it would be no surprise if Stephens left the club.

Virtually every club is constantly on the look out for new investment and there are stories circulating that it could come from an unlikely source for Charlton. Former Chelsea and Leeds supremo, Ken Bates, is reportedly interested in the Addicks. The move does seem one of the more unlikely to happen though.