Stoke City manager Gary Rowett recently gave an indication of Jack Butland’s future and it very much seems like he is set to stay at the Bet365 Stadium this summer. Chelsea emerged as one of the prime contenders to sign him, as they are likely to lose Thibaut Courtois in the ongoing transfer window.
Ever since the relegation of the Potters, Jack Butland has been linked with a move away from the club. It shouldn’t come as a surprise as we often see when the team gets relegated to a lower division, they find it hard to keep hold of their star players. Stoke City have already lost their talismanic winger Xherdan Shaqiri to Liverpool and at one point, it looked like a matter of time before Butland would part ways with the club.
Rowett was quoted as saying,“I don’t believe any rumours if I’m honest. I understand the good players are going to be linked with good clubs which is great, I get that. That shows the level of player we’ve got at this club. It shows the level Jack Butland is at as a young keeper and that those clubs might potentially look at him.”
The English custodian has quite easily been one of the consistent performers over the last few seasons at the Bet365 Stadium. The 25-year-old was picked for the England squad for the 2018 FIFAWorld Cup, however, Gareth Southgate went on to use Jordan Pickford in goal throughout the tournament. Butland has managed eight appearances for the Three Lions as of now.
Last season, he kept 6 clean sheets in the Premier League, however, with a better defensive unit in front of him, those numbers would have certainly been better. Butland is known especially for his shot-stopping skills as his reflexes in close quarters are tremendous. One of the areas where he can work on, however, is his distribution. Having already lost Lee Grant to Manchester United, Butland is important for Rowett now more than ever.
There is still enough time left in the transfer market so one cannot yet confirm whether Butland will stay. However, from his manager’s stand, it clearly seems like the player is going to stay put at the club even though they have gone down to the Championship. Only time will tell if this good news will be short-lived.
