Stoke City’s owners are some of the richest in England, but have been unable to invest their wealth into transfers in recent years due to Financial Fair Play regulations.
Last summer saw the first flex of Stoke’s financial muscle in a while, perhaps due to the January 2023 sale of Harry Souttar to Leicester City for £15 million, with the club spending over €18m on incomings and implementing a change of strategy that saw more players arrive from European clubs, as opposed to solely British clubs like previous seasons.
And that spending doesn’t Stoke have been linked to £7 million-rated QPR centre-back Jake Clarke-Salter in recent days by The Telegraph’s John Percy, with the Potters on the hunt for a left-sided central defender following Luke McNally’s return to Burnley after his season on loan.
Premier League clubs are also keeping tabs on Clarke-Salter after an impressive season at Loftus Road where he has been finally able to prove his fitness somewhat, so it may be a tough sell for the ex-Chelsea man to make the move to a fellow Championship side.
Whilst Clarke-Salter may not end up arriving in the Potteries, his reported link is a sure sign that the Coates’ are prepared to back current boss Steven Schumacher this summer, and are ready to splash the cash to get Stoke moving in the right direction – much like they did last summer, albeit with mixed results.
Steven Schumacher deserves Stoke City backing after promising end to 2023-24 season
Eyebrows were raised across the country as Schumacher left Plymouth Argyle to join Stoke last December, especially after he had masterminded their return to the Championship the previous season and had them higher in the table than the Potters at the time of his departure.
The prospect of the Stoke job can be appealing to any head coach though, with owners that are supporters of the club and therefore prepared to work closely with anyone they see fit to lead them forward.
The 40-year-old had to win the trust of the Coates’ this season, and his stellar job in keeping the club afloat in the Championship whilst also playing an attractive, front-foot style of football has surely made him gain that trust.
