Former Stoke City player Lee Hendrie has admitted that he believes that the club could be one to watch in the Championship next season if they are able to nail their recruitment this summer.

The Potters struggled considerably with their consistency at this level during the previous term as they were forced to settle for a 14th place finish in the league standings.

With the new campaign set to get underway in July, Stoke have already decided to make some alterations to their squad.

As well as opting to release four senior players, the Potters will be able to turn to three fresh faces for inspiration later this year.

Aden Flint, Harry Clarke and Josh Laurent are all set to feature for Stoke in the second-tier after recently completing moves to the bet365 Stadium.

Set to face Millwall on the opening weekend of the 2022/23 season, the Potters will be determined to secure a positive result at The Den.

Ahead of the upcoming term, Hendrie has admitted that he believes that it is now time for Stoke to turn a corner under the guidance of manager Michael O'Neill.

Asked on Sky Sports about why he decided to name the Potters as one of the teams to keep an eye on in the Championship, Hendrie said: "I just feel like they've got to start turning a corner, it's a big football club.

"I played there under Tony Pulis.

"You know, they have started to make small steps.

"I think if they again bring the right personnel of players in, I feel that football club, it showed potential last season watching the games that they played.

"And I do feel that they have got to really inject that little bit more into this season, I feel that they will be there or thereabouts."

 

 

The Verdict

Stoke's supporters will be hoping that Hendrie's prediction turns out to be correct as they have had relatively little to shout about in recent seasons.

When you consider that the Potters are currently able to call upon the services of the likes of Lewis Baker and Jacob Brown, it wouldn't be a shock if they go on to launch a bid for a place in the top-six in the upcoming campaign.

Brown managed to find the back of the net on 14 occasions in all competitions during the previous term whilst Baker has provided nine direct goal contributions for Stoke since joining the club earlier this year.

By adding some extra quality to his squad in the coming weeks, O'Neill may be able to guide Stoke to a positive start to the new term.