The striker has joined Stoke on a season-long loan and will try to win his first competitive start since February next time out after falling out of favour with City.

Tom Cannon watches from the stands during Leicester City’s 3-0 victory over his previous loan club Preston.Tom Cannon watches from the stands during Leicester City’s 3-0 victory over his previous loan club Preston.

Tom Cannon will attempt to put the “difficult” few months at Leicester City behind him and score goals for Stoke this season.

The striker signed a deadline-day loan deal with the Potteries and is looking forward to getting back on the pitch after falling out of favour at City. He was given the number nine shirt at Stoke and is anticipated to be the club’s first choice striker this season.

If Cannon is in the starting lineup when Stoke go to Oxford for their first game following the international break, it will be his second competitive appearance since early March, and his first since February. Despite doing well when he originally joined City, scoring three goals and setting up two more in January and February, he soon found himself an unused substitute under Enzo Maresca, while Steve Cooper’s selection in pre-season hinted he wasn’t in the new manager’s plans either.

For Cannon, this has not been simple. He believes he has given his all in training and has performed admirably for City when given the opportunity.
“I suppose it’s been hard,” he told StokeOnTrentLive. “Obviously, as a player, you want to be playing, so it’s difficult when you’re not, but it’s all about finding the right balance.

“I’ve been going to training every day and giving my all. For some reason, I haven’t gotten many minutes, but when I have, I believe I’ve performed well.

“Hopefully, I can bring that over here and strike the ground running. There’s no higher feeling in football than scoring goals, especially as a striker, so I’m hoping to get back to it as soon as possible.

Cannon will be eager to showcase the components of his game that he’s learnt while practicing with Jamie Vardy since recovering from his back injury. Growing up at Everton’s academy, Cannon watched films of Vardy and Luis Suarez to improve his game, but he also got to see the City hero in action firsthand, which helped him add to his skill set.

“Jamie Vardy is one of the best at it, if not the best,” the NHL player remarked. “When I was younger, I would watch videos of him and his playing technique.

“Being there with him in training was strange at first, but when you do it every day, you get used to it, and I’ve become good friends with him.” It’s good!