Stoke City are set to spend their fourth season in the Sky Bet Championship after their May 2018 relegation from the Premier League.
Stoke City have never finished above the halfway point in the Championship table. Last season’s 14th place was their highest since relegation.
They face next season with more than a task to do to drag themselves into anything resembling play-off shape. Michael O’Neill has the task of rebuilding and reshaping his squad ahead of that challenge.
One player mentioned as being of interest to the Potters is Accrington Stanley striker Dion Charles. Stoke On Trent Live’s Michael Baggaley mentioned this – referencing a tweet by Sun reporter Alan Nixon:
STOKE CITY. Keen on striker Dion Charles. New Northern Ireland cap. ACCRINGTON STANLEY will want around 2m.
— Alan Nixon (@reluctantnicko) July 4, 2021
25-year-old centre-forward Charles hit 19 League One goals for Accrington as they finished 11th in the table. Preston-born Charles also made his international bow with Northern Ireland.
However, Stoke’s ‘interest’ in Charles is over two weeks old and there seems to be no movement on that front.
This has led to a question by a Potters fan on Twitter that was subsequently quote retweeted by Nixon:
Nobody paying the 2m asking price at this stage https://t.co/qkjwRErvos
— Alan Nixon (@reluctantnicko) July 19, 2021
Nixon is quite clear on what he says here. The ‘Owd Reds are wanting £2million for their top scorer. The trouble is, no one is biting at that valuation.
Thoughts?
Stoke City need a striker. Dion Charles is a striker and a striker with goals. The trouble is it seems that the Potters don’t want to pay £2milion for him.
In a way it is understandable. It’s a lot of money to shell out on a relatively unproven striker with just one standout season behind him.
It is also understandable that Accrington Stanley want to set a valuation that they see as fair. After all, his goals are of massive importance to them.
The longer this drags on, the more it will become a Mexican stand-off. Who will blink first? Stanley on their valuation or Stoke with their wallet?
