Stoke City will be determined to move forward as a club next season after being forced to settle for a 14th place finish in the Championship last month.

The Potters were briefly in contention for a spot in the play-offs during the first-half of the campaign before embarking on a poor run of form following the turn of the year.

Michael O'Neill has already made some alterations to his squad ahead of the upcoming transfer window as Tommy Smith, James Chester, Tom Ince and Steven Fletcher are all set to leave Stoke at the end of June when their current contracts expire.

Having already been linked with moves for a number of players, it will be interesting to see whether the Potters are able to nail their recruitment.

Here, we have decided to take a look at two Stoke dilemmas Michael O'Neill is facing ahead of the upcoming window...

Should the Potters part ways with Benik Afobe?

Benik Afobe has now returned to the bet365 Stadium after featuring for Millwall during the 2021/22 season.

The forward managed to produce some impressive performances in this particular loan stint with the Lions as he scored 12 goals and provided three assists in 38 Championship appearances.

Given that Afobe's current deal at Stoke is set to run until 2023, the upcoming window represents a good opportunity for the club to secure a reasonable fee for him.

Although the forward did manage to showcase his talent at this level last season, he has only managed to find the back of the net on nine occasions for the Potters since joining the club and thus it wouldn't be at all surprising if O'Neill opts to cut ties with him before the start of the new term.

Will O'Neill be able to convince Joe Allen to sign a new contract?

Stoke announced their intentions to keep Joe Allen at the club last month as they revealed that they had entered discussions with the Wales international over a new contract.

The midfielder's current deal is set to expire at the end of June and thus O'Neill will need to act quickly when it comes to negotiations.

 

 

Although Swansea City have recently been linked with a move for Allen, manager Russell Martin has admitted that they will need to move players on in order to facilitate a switch.

The 32-year-old has now made 139 appearances for the Potters in the Championship and will be confident in his ability to deliver the goods at this level next season after recording a respectable average WhoScored match rating of 6.74 during the previous campaign.