Stoke City

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Stoke City recently announced the signing of Wolverhampton Wanderers central midfielder Luke Cundle on loan for the rest of the season, but the news hasn't gone down well with Plymouth Argyle supporters.

The Potters' new recruit was recalled from a temporary spell at Home Park, and having already stolen Steven Schumacher, Pilgrims reporter Chris Errington, external has offered his thoughts to BBC Radio Stoke's Lucas Yeomans about losing a second key figure.

"He's a very good player Lucas, and he's a good person as well, and I think that counts for a lot doesn't it in modern day football."

"It is a little bit gutting for the Argyle fans Lucas, but at the end of the day, when you have somebody on loan, even if it's deemed as a season-long loan, there is always that possibility in January that that player could get recalled."

"It's two years in a row where Argyle have had a good player on loan and he has been recalled, so yes it's gutting, annoying, frustrating, disappointing, you know choose whichever word you want out of those, but the reality is that he still is a Wolves player and they can dictate what they want to do with him."

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Despite only having been appointed by Stoke City a few weeks ago, Steven Schumacher has quickly become appreciated by fans thanks to his attack-minded, exciting style of football.

Former Potters defensive midfielder, Glenn Whelan, has been speaking to BBC Radio Stoke's Lucas Yeomans to offer his thoughts on the head coach's start to life in the dugout.

"Sometimes it can be hard when a new manager comes in. You'd probably like to have a little bit more time on the grass to get your style and your principles across, but he's come in and he's had to deal with a lot of games, but you can already see with the new manager, his effectiveness and what he wants, it's coming out on the pitch because the lads seem more on the front foot and they've been a little bit more in control of games from what I've seen."

"He's a young manager but he's got a lot of experience. He wants to get in there and he wants to improve and he's saying all the right things of what he wants to do with Stoke's team and Stoke's squad, so he's got the right bounce at the right time because you can already tell only after a short time that although results haven't been great, that the performances have definitely picked up."

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Last week, Stoke City completed the signing of Leicester City goalkeeper Daniel Iversen on loan until the end of the season, and For Fox Sake Podcast, external host, Peter Selby, has been speaking to BBC Radio Stoke's Lucas Yeomans to deliver his verdict on the 26-year-old making the temporary switch to the Bet365 Stadium.

"He's been given a chance at Stoke to revitalise his career, but from a Leicester point of view, I think it will be a loan move to do him good, but also to put him in the shop window for a move permanently in the summer."

"Very, very highly thought of, again at international level, excellent shot-stopper, needs to be slightly more commanding. He's got the size to be commanding and I think that will come with age and experience, but aside from that, very calm and overall a goalkeeper where you can look at him and go, do you know what? In years to come, you could be a very good international quality goalkeeper at the highest level."

"I think Stoke are getting a bit of a gem here. It's no surprise he's been let go. Injuries aside, effectively and obviously from a position at the top of the table, we don't really need him which is a glorious position to be in as a fan of a club, but you are talking about an excellent keeper."

New Stoke City goalkeeper Daniel Iversen says he has to play well to keep the number one shirt.

The Dane joined on loan from Leicester City last week and went straight in to the starting eleven for the Potters FA Cup third round tie against Brighton and Hove Albion on Saturday.

Speaking to BBC Radio Stoke for the first time since joining the club, Iversen said:

"I think my agents have been speaking to them [Stoke City] for a long time now and there was a little bit of rumour about in the summer too. But Leicester didn't want to let me go, and finally I come here now and I'm really happy to be here.

"I've been made really welcome, all of the staff and all of the club have been really welcoming to me, so I feel like it's an easy club to come in to.

"Hopefully I can play every game now, also I have to play well to keep my shirt and I will do my best for the club."

Click here to listen to the full interview between Lucas Yeomans and Daniel Iversen.

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Since joining Stoke City from Plymouth Argyle back in December, Steven Schumacher has won one and drawn three of his opening four games in the Championship, so is still unbeaten in the league during his time at the club.

While the head coach will be assessing his options to see whether there is anyone he could sign in the market, he does already have some talented squad members in the building who he has praised during an interview with BBC Radio Stoke.

"I think we've learnt that the players have got some quality, like it's there for all to see, even in the limited training sessions that we've done. I like the way we pass the ball, how we receive the ball, the technique's actually really good."

"As you say, there have been some positive signs, but I do feel as though we can improve as well. I think we need a little bit more end product when we get bodies forward, we need to commit more bodies forward when we can when we're attacking and finish with something on the goal a little bit more often."

"I know we've had a lot of shots or a high number of penalty box entries over the last four games but haven't scored enough goals, so that's what we'll look to try and improve."

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Stoke City have confirmed the signing of midfielder Luke Cundle on loan from Wolves, until the end of the season.

The 21-year-old played under Stoke head coach Steven Schumacher at Plymouth Argyle in the first half of the season, scoring five goals.

On signing for the club, Cundle said: “Stoke City is a massive club, it’s a new chapter for me and I’m delighted to be here.

“I know the boss and his staff well having worked with them previously. I really like the ideas he puts across and how he gets his teams to play.

“He plays attacking, high energy football on the front foot, where everybody runs and passes forward, and that suits my game. I’m looking forward to getting going and letting my football do the talking.”

Stoke City's technical director, Ricky Martin added: “Having played under Steven during the first half of this season at Plymouth, Luke is already well versed in the style of play we are looking to implement at Stoke City.

“Steven sees Luke as one of the brightest young talents around and as someone whose drive and personality will have a positive impact on our group.

“We have strong connections with Wolverhampton Wanderers, they believe Luke’s development will be well served with us, and we are equally excited by what he can bring to our side between now and the end of the season.”

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Lucas Yeomans - BBC Radio Stoke: Sport at Six presenter

They say calling the January Transfer Window ‘tricky to navigate’ is a cliché. That’s because, well, it is tricky to navigate. So Stoke will have to be smart when searching for options to bolster their squad this month; with other clubs either reluctant to sell at risk of jeopardising their own season, or only willing to sell for an extortionate amount – well above said player’s true value.

When searching for signings this window, it’ll have to be a case of need, not want for head coach Steven Schumacher, technical director Ricky Martin and the recruitment team.

So, what positions fall under that banner for Stoke this month? Well, they’ve already ticked off the first necessity, a new goalkeeper in the form of Daniel Iverson, and rumours of a deal for Wolves’ on-loan Plymouth midfielder Luke Cundle are heating up, so what else?

A left back will certainly be on the cards, with the club’s only recognised option at the moment being 33 year old Enda Stevens, who’s only managed 12 starts so far this season. Schumacher was known previously for his emphasis on allowing his full backs to push forward up the pitch, something we’ve seen already in his brief time in charge of The Potters, allowing the likes of Gooch and Tchamadeu to thrive. Whilst Stevens has been reliable when called upon, as has the out of position Jordan Thompson, a true out and out left back, capable of making forward runs and adding to Stoke’s attacking threat, whilst adding some much needed depth seems crucial.

Whilst Stoke seem to have a range of options up front, with the likes of Ryan Mmaee, Wesley, Dwight Gayle, plus youngsters Nathan Lowe and Emre Tezgel itching for opportunities too – they still appear to lack that out and out goal scorer. That being said, a proven goal scorer in the Championship is a tricky find any time of year, and rarely for a cheap price too; do Stoke fish in the lower leagues of the English Football League? Take a risk on an out of favour striker from a rival, or a Premier League youngster on loan? Head of Recruitment Jarrod Dublin will no doubt be working overtime to find the best option in a limited pool.

Stoke City blogger and podcaster, George Weaver from Potterlytics, external gives his thoughts on how 2023 panned out for the Potters and gave it marks out of ten:

"I'm going to go pretty low and go with a four."

"It's a strange one, because you think back on it, emotionally it's probably not felt as bad as a four. There were those moments, like the run in March to April where everyone was really confident that we could make an outside run for play-offs that season or even try for it this season, as we'd made the changes over summer. But I saw something recently that showed that other than Birmingham, we're pretty much bottom of the table for 2023 of the clubs that have been in the Championship for those two seasons. 46 games, 50 points is not a good return for any club, let alone one that has spent the money we have in the summer and given so much control to the manager at the time."

"I think when we started the year we were in around the bottom six, looking at the relegation places and wondering if we're going to keep on going down. And as we've finished the year, aside from the big win at Birmingham we're still looking over our shoulder, so I can't really give it more than a four."

"I'd give them two points for the good work over the summer and the way we seem to have changed the way we work behind the scenes, and two points for that run in March and April that gave us a bit of hope, but it's hard to find much beside that really."

Stoke City could be open to offers for three of their more experienced midfielders. Former captain Lewis Baker, Daniel Johnson and Ben Pearson could all potentially move on this transfer window.

Daniel Johnson has been a regular for the Potters this season, appearing in 27 games, scoring two goals. While Lewis Baker has just returned to the squad following a lengthy injury and has been involved in the last four games.

Pearson, who signed a four year contract with the club just last summer could also leave, although he would command a handsome fee. (TeamTalk, external)

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Every so often, a club has a young player who bursts on to the scene to really get fans excited, and that was certainly the case for the Potters back in 2006 when teenager Adam Rooney, in only his second start for the club scored a hat-trick away at Brighton and Hove Albion.

Sadly, that wasn't a sign of what was to come from the striker. The following season, after making 19 appearances he was loaned out to League One Yeovil Town for the remainder of the season. Rooney returned to the then Britannia Stadium at the beginning of the 2007/08 season, but wouldn't make a single appearance for the club. Instead he would be loaned out to League Two twice, to Chesterfield and then Bury.

Rooney made a total of 19 appearances for the Potters before he made the move to Scotland, where he's arguably enjoyed the most successful periods of his career. He joined Inverness Caledonian Thistle in 2008, and although his first season ended in disappointment with relegation from the Scottish Premier League, the Irishman enjoyed two prolific seasons with Cali - scoring 26 goals as they won promotion back to the SPL. He then finished the following season as one of the top scorers in the division with 21 goals in 42 games.

It was after that season that Rooney caught the eye of Birmingham City manager Chris Hughton, who brought him back for a second spell in the Championship. Sadly, Rooney couldn't rediscover his goalscoring form for the Blues, and after 30 appearances, seven goals and a loan spell at Swindon Town, he joined League One Oldham Athletic.

The Irishman's stay in League One would not last long however. After just six months at the Latics, that included two goals against Port Vale, he made the move back to the Scottish Premier League, this time to Aberdeen, where the striker enjoyed the most successful years of his career.

In his first full season with Aberdeen Rooney scored 28 goals, six of them in the Europa League and finished as the leading goal scorer in the SPL. Over a four and a half year spell with Aberdeen the striker made 194 appearances, scoring 87 goals.

Rooney's time at Pittodrie would be the pinnacle of his career, as after four-and-a-half-years at the Scottish club, he once again made the move back to England, this time in the National League with big-spending Salford City. It wasn't a poor season by any standards for Rooney, who netted 23 times as Salford won promotion to the English Football League for the first time in their history. But the following season would be the Irishman's last in English league football.

In March 2019, having scored nine goals in Salford's debut League Two campaign he once again moved back in to non-league, this time with National League Solihull Moors.

Since leaving Solihull in 2022, the former Stoke striker has continued to ply his trade further down the football pyramid. First signing for Southern League side Stratford Town before moving on to National League North side Brackley Town.

Earlier this season Rooney signed for his 14th club, National League North side Hereford FC.

Stoke City head coach Steven Schumacher says the club have no need to "panic" in the January transfer window.

Schumacher made his first addition of the window last week, signing Leicester goalkeeper Daniel Iversen on loan until the end of the season, with the club also heavily linked with Wolves midfielder Luke Cundle.

On the transfer window, Schumacher told BBC Radio Stoke:

"There's no need to panic in the transfer market. We know where we'd like to improve the team, but as I keep saying there's good players here already.

Creatively we could maybe try and strengthen in that department if possible, but yeah it's going to take not only recruitment but it's going to take time and work and preparation on the training pitch for us to get better."

Mark Calladine - Stoke City season ticket holder

The FA Cup third round paired Stoke with Brighton and Hove Albion, a club in their seventh season in the Premier League, and a team that have gone from strength to strength, even doing well in Europe this season after a sixth placed finish in last campaign.

Brighton, whilst not being seen as big 6 club (yet) are playing some eye catching football and are producing some quality players in the process.

It's somewhat ironic that in 2018 Brighton finished their first season in the Premier League in 15th, having reached the magical 40 points, whilst Stoke fell short with only 33 point and an eventual relegation to the Championship after a 10 year occupation, where Stoke had produced three ninth placed finishes, an FA Cup final and League Cup semi-final success in that time. Just like Brighton, Stoke also enjoyed a spell in the Europa League.

Sadly Brighton have become the team Stoke once were, if not better. They’re progressing year on year, even more successfully than the Potters own time in the Premier League.

Saturday's FA Cup third round tie was always going to be a tough encounter, but would be a great comparison to see how Stoke matched up to a club who, back in 2017, we'd have been the role model and blueprint for.

Stoke fans arrived at the Bet365 with a hope and expectation only the FA Cup can provide, with the majority in attendance being hopeful that we'd at least compete and give a good account of ourselves.

Going a goal up, was a bonus and gave the ‘underdogs' something to cheer, even if only for a short period of time as the visitors equalised with a ferocious and unstoppable shot late on in first half stoppage time.

Brighton shifted up a gear in the second half, scoring an early goal to give them the lead, despite Stoke managing to level up from the penalty spot.

Two further strikes meant that Brighton were true to their league status and ended up winning the game comfortably 4-2. Stoke were by no means disgraced, but at the same time the gulf in class was clear for all to see.

Stoke fans leaving the game could be proud of the team's efforts and if being honest, no-one was surprised at the eventual outcome, Stoke were beaten fair and square by the better team and the FA Cup hopes could be packed away for another season.

In football, clubs tend to move in cycles of relative success, mediocracy and struggle. Were Stokes ten years as a Premier League club a blip out of the ordinary, are we meant to be a club of Championship status? Or can we strive to get back there and learn from Brighton’s model of operation which is currently serving them so well? Who knows, perhaps in a few years time Stoke and Brighton’s life cycles may have reversed again, we can but hope.

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Having undergone surgery to rectify a knee injury over the summer, Lewis Baker has been absent from the team for several months, but the central midfielder has now completed his recovery and has returned to the squad.

The Potters' former captain was named in Steven Schumacher's starting line-up for the 0-0 Championship draw against Ipswich Town, and the head coach has praised his star for his performances since coming back into the side.

"Lewis is really talented. What we've seen in the short period that we've been here is that he's got some ability. I knew that anyway, I knew who he was before we came here."

"I wasn't fully aware of the injury that he had so when I had a conversation with him and he explained where he's been at over the first part of the season, I understood it's going to take him a bit of time, but it was really pleasing to have him on the pitch."

"I think he showed, especially early on in the game, some of the quality that he has got, some of the positions he took up and the shots he got away in the two appearances he's made, obviously against Watford he had a big chance as well, so that's what we need. We need goalscorers from midfield who contribute. That's the way we like our team to play and as I say he's got ability, so hopefully he can be one of them."

BBC Radio Stoke summariser Angela Smith shares her thoughts on the Potters third round exit from the FA Cup against Brighton and Hove Albion on Saturday.

"Brighton had more class throughout the game all over the pitch and they had people with quality who could finish off their chances, and that's what Stoke have got to aspire to be. Once we were that team, and now we have to get back there again. They now know what they have to do, this group of players to achieve that. I think the fans can go out with their heads held high and so can the players.

They played well and now they have to do it for the rest of the season in the league. I've got to say that I thought the players to a man worked and worked and worked, they clearly like this head coach [Schumacher], they understand what they're doing and you've got players like Bae Junho and Wouter Burger who have come in and are showing that they were good buys."

Stoke City head coach Steven Schumacher says he saw enough from his side in Saturday's FA Cup loss to Brighton and Hove Albion to give him confidence for the remainder of the season.

The 4-2 defeat to Premier League Brighton was the Potters first loss under Steven Schumacher, but the head coach told BBC Radio Stoke:

"Since we've been in that's five games now and we're seeing some good signs, and I keep saying that, from the team the effort's getting there.

I felt for 70 minutes we showed really good energy today and had to work extremely hard to control them and they were organised and disciplined in what we asked them to do.

So, I'm confident going in to the second half of the season that we will improve and the results will definitely get better."

Stoke City are on the verge of signing Wolverhampton Wanderers midfielder Luke Cundle. The 21 year old, who has spent the first half of the season at Plymouth Argyle is undergoing a medical at the club ahead of a proposed loan move. (John Percy, Telegraph, external)

Stoke City face Premier League Brighton and Hove Albion in the third round of the FA Cup this afternoon. It's the second year in a row that the two teams have gone head to head in the FA Cup with Brighton winning 1-0 in the fifth round last season.

Stoke's first signing of the January transfer window could feature today. Goalkeeper Daniel Iversen joined the club on loan from Leicester yesterday, and having not featured for the Foxes this campaign could be in contention to start as the Dane is not cup-tied.

Head coach Steven Schumacher does have a number of players missing through injury as Josh Laurent, Lynden Gooch, Tyrese Campbell and Enda Stevens are all unavailable. However, it's better news for Mehdi Leris and Ben Pearson who have both returned to full training and are available this afternoon.

As for Brighton, their manager Roberto De Zerbi has said the FA Cup is a "very important target" for the Seagulls and told the media that his team won't underestimate the Potters, saying: "They are a good, aggressive team. In ball possession, they have a very clear style. They play with two full-backs inside of the play. It's another tough game but, to win the game, you have to fight for 90 minutes."

De Zerbi does have some players missing for the game today. Wingers Kaoru Mitoma and Simon Adingra are both away playing in the Asian Cup and Africa Cup of Nations, while defender Adam Webster faces a late fitness test.

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Stoke City recently confirmed the signing of Leicester City goalkeeper Daniel Iversen on loan until the end of the season, and the shot-stopper has been speaking about how delighted he is to make the temporary move to the Bet365 Stadium.

"I have known of the interest for a couple of transfer windows, and it’s great to now get a deal done. This feels like the right time for me to come here, work hard to earn my place in the team and show what I can do."

“I really like the Championship, the atmosphere the fans create at every game and the relentless nature of the matches. I believe my experience playing in the Premier League last season, while in tough circumstances, has benefitted me and made me a better goalkeeper."

“We’ll take one game at a time, but the clear objective is to help the team climb the table and finish as high as we can.”

With Stoke City set to welcome Brighton to the Bet365 Stadium on Saturday for FA Cup third round action, we asked for your views on whether you think Steven Schumacher's side will be able to book their place in the next stage of the competition this weekend.

Here are some of the top comments we received:

Nathan: "I want us [to] go on [a] cup run, but where we are in the league, the league is what matters this season."

Jimmy: "1-0. Stoke with a late winner."

Andy: "I’m always hopeful."

If you'd like to get involved, have your say on tonight's BBC Radio Stoke's Praise and Grumble.