Stoke City have become the first team this season to get relegated from the English Premier League. The Potters were below par all season and it has been reflected in their results with Paul Lambert’s men having to spend most of their time below the safety zone.
They do have a number of star players in their side like Jack Butland, Xherdan Shaqiri and Joe Allen, who command a high wage every week at the club. Relegation means that Stoke will now have to face a constrained budget and might no longer be able to afford the luxury of having such quality players.
A mass exodus can be expected with Joe Allen already attracting interest from a host of clubs including newly promoted side Wolves. Allen signed for Stoke back in 2016 on a five-year contract but with no relegation clause included in the deal. This would mean that Stoke could get a healthy fee for him and would be wise to spend it to bring in some other players, either on loan or a permanent deal.
Here are three players they can target to replace Allen at Stoke.
Gareth Barry
The West Brom midfielder is the longest-serving player in the top-flight of English football. He has a wealth of experience and with West Brom also having the same misfortune of getting relegated to the second tier, maybe Stoke can weasel out a deal for him.
He might not be able to replace Allen’s fluidity in midfield but Barry is mature and smart enough to fill up the gap in other ways.
Scott McTominay
The youngster has had a breakthrough season at Manchester United. It is not an easy thing for an academy player break into a team whose boss is someone like Jose Mourinho. However, that is exactly what McTominay has done and done well.
He has played alongside the likes of Paul Pogba, Nemanja Matic and Ander Herrera and has kept Marouane Fellaini out of the team. The player is a fantastic young talent but his future at United might take a turn for the worse if the Red Devils buy new players. Such a situation would, however, open the door for Stoke City who could bring him in on loan to give him game time.
Joe Willock
A case similar to that of McTominay, Stoke can also target this Arsenal youngster on loan. He has the experience of playing in Europe this season and can certainly benefit from regular game time at this point in his career.
