Stoke City transfer state of play as Mark Robins tries to find way past hurdles
Stoke City are expected to try to bring in final third pace in the last few days of a challenging transfer window.
Mark Robins has added left-back Josh Wilson-Esbrand and striker Ali Al-Hamadi on loan so far in January and is hoping to sign another one or two ready for an important three months before the deadline passes at 11pm on Monday.
Stoke’s constraints due to Financial Fair Play rules are highlighted by Luton’s purchase of Wigan Athletic forward Thelo Aasgaard for £3.5 million, which is almost as much as Stoke spent in the whole of the summer window combined on permanent signings.
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It has been a year for cutting cloth after an £18m transfer frenzy in 2023 under Ricky Martin and Alex Neil – who both ended up falling on their sword – and the wage bill has also taken a sharp reduction as players such as Wesley, Ciaran Clark, Josh Laurent, Mehdi Leris, Daniel Johnson and Tyrese Campbell have said farewell.
A winger appears to be the priority but a pursuit of Mark Sykes from Bristol City currently seems to be dead in the water. The 27-year-old ticked a few boxes with his athleticism, position and experience but Bristol City have the option to extend his contract for a year beyond this summer.
Stoke are unlikely to make any further loan signings after reaching the five-man quota for a match day squad – so there probably won’t be a dash for Liverpool prospect Jayden Danns, aged 19, who has been on the radar of plenty of Championship clubs but may not be let out anyway.
But Stoke are still busy trying to get final bits of business over the line if there’s a chance and will remain active up to the deadline – and, sitting two points above the drop zone in the Championship, there is no getting away from the potential importance of new blood.
Robins will have players becoming available for him for the first time and Al-Hamadi is on standby to make his debut this weekend at Hull. Ben Pearson is edging closer to his senior comeback after coming through a second 45 minutes for the under-21s.
The 30-year-old midfielder, who is closing in on his 250th appearance in the Championship, has been out since March last year with a hamstring injury that required off-season surgery but will add much-needed bite in a key area.
Bosun Lawal, who is still waiting for his debut after signing for under £1m from Celtic in August, played 60 minutes for the under-21s too. Ben Gibson has been stepping up training after the best part of a month out. Ben Wilmot is recovering from soft tissue damage on his foot while Million Manhoef, Jordan Thompson and Sam Gallagher are hoping to be back in February, with Eric Bocat (calf) probably facing the longest recovery.
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