Rotherham United loan striker Will Grigg and the recall clause

The striker, who is due to spend the season at AESSEAL New York Stadium, has hit the target in three successive matches.

Manager Paul Warne concedes they would be powerless to keep him if parent club Sunderland decide to activate a recall clause in the January transfer window.

Rotherham are one of Sunderland’s rivals at the top of the division and the fear is that the Black Cats won’t leave one of their players at a club competing with them for a place in the Championship.

“Potentially they could take him back,” Warne said. “We can’t stop that happening.

“That is always the disadvantage of loans: you can sometimes get a player at a good rate but you don’t have full control.”

Grigg is out of contract at the Stadium of Light in the summer. The 30-year-old’s move to Wearside never worked out and the player said when he joined the Millers on August 31 deadline day that he had pretty much severed his ties with the North-east outfit.

He has taken to life at New York and would be delighted to stay for the full duration of his loan.

When the Advertiser asked him about the possibility of a recall, he said: “You can’t think about it until it comes. I’m solely concentrating on Rotherham and everything that is happening here.

“January is just something that’s in the background. In terms of now, it’s the old cliche: I’ve just got to concentrate on the next game. It’s as simple as that. When January comes, we’ll see where we’re at.”

It is believed that Sunderland insisted on a recall option as part of the deal that brought the centre-forward to South Yorkshire.

Warne, who has guided his side into fourth spot, two points behind second-placed Sunderland, is remaining relaxed about the situation.

“It is not playing on my mind massively in October,” he said. “If he scores 15 goals between now and January and Sunderland suddenly stop scoring, it could be a problem.

“While Sunderland are doing well and he is not in their plans I don’t see it being an issue.”