Stoke City are hoping to finally break their bottom-half Championship curse and begin to climb the table under Steven Schumacher this season.
The Potters had a busy transfer window, with six players allowed to leave for fees or on loan and 10 new faces arriving at the bet365 Stadium throughout the summer, including four loan players.
Schumacher’s side have had a decent start to the new campaign but need to continue in a similar vein for the coming months if they are to finish in the top half of the second tier for the first time since relegation to the league in 2018.
Stoke let seven players go upon the expiry of their contracts at the end of last season, and some of Schumacher’s current squad currently face a similar fate at the end of 2024/25 if nothing changes, so FLW have taken a look at the 11 players who, as of now, will depart the Potteries come next summer.
Emre Tezgel
A name that will come as a surprise to many to feature on this list, Emre Tezgel, who has been highly rated for a number of years as a youth striker and is just beginning to make his mark on senior football, is out of contract with his boyhood club next summer.
Tezgel signed his first professional contract, a three-year deal, with the Potters in July 2022 after he had made his first-team debut at 16 years old just six months earlier.
Still only 18, he has fully broken into Steven Schumacher’s senior squad this season and begun to score goals at senior level consistently for the first time in his short career.
It is imperative that Stoke tie him down to a new long-term deal as quickly as possible – he is widely seen as the future of the club and has the potential to go to the very top, so the Potters must keep hold of him while they can.
Jordan Thompson
Northern Ireland international midfielder Jordan Thompson was due to be out of contract at the end of last season but saw the option to extend his deal by another year triggered by Stoke due to his growing influence on Schumacher’s side in 2023/24.
| Jordan Thompson 2023/24 statistics | |
|---|---|
| Appearances | 32 |
| Starts | 23 |
| Goals | 2 |
| Assists | 2 |
| Stats as per Sofascore, league only | |
Thompson is the Potters’ current longest-serving player after Tyrese Campbell’s summer departure and has made over 150 appearances for the club since joining in January 2020 but will be free to find a new club next year unless he is offered fresh terms.
Tom Cannon
Tom Cannon was a wanted man this summer and it was the Potters that won the race for his signature on a season-long loan from Leicester City amid interest from numerous Championship clubs.
Stoke were first linked with a potential move for Cannon’s services by The Telegraph’s John Percy at the start of July but were only able to get the deal done late in the window due to the Foxes waiting to bring in more additions to their frontline.
He has insisted that he is “itching to get going” in red and white, and Stoke fans will be pinning their hopes on him to consistently score goals and help the team improve on years gone by this season.
With no option to buy agreed, he will return to the King Power Stadium in the summer.
Lynden Gooch
Lynden Gooch joined Stoke from boyhood club Sunderland on a two-year deal last summer but failed to nail down a consistent starting role under Alex Neil or Schumacher in his maiden season at the bet365 Stadium.
The 28-year-old featured 30 times in all competitions, scoring twice, and was a handy versatile option to have from the bench after he played as a full-back on both flanks, wing-back on both flanks and at left-wing for the Potters.
He has probably had more game time than expected so far this season but will be on the move next summer if nothing changes.
Lewis Koumas
18-year-old Lewis Koumas has enjoyed an electric start to his Stoke career so far, so much so that Potters fans will already be rueing the fact that he is only on loan from Premier League giants Liverpool until the end of the campaign – with no option to buy included in the deal.
The Welsh international winger is getting his first taste of senior football in the Potteries and has earned praise from boss Schumacher for adapting so quickly to Championship football after an impressive first month.
Koumas signed a new long-term contract with the Reds before joining Stoke, so Potters fans must enjoy him while they can before he returns to Merseyside next summer.
Ashley Phillips
Centre-back Ashley Phillips is another of the Potters’ Premier League loanee contingent after he joined last month from Tottenham Hotspur until the end of the campaign – with no option to buy included in the deal.
Despite only being 19 years old, he has previous experience of the second tier from his time at Blackburn Rovers prior to his permanent move to North London last summer and spent the second-half of 2023/24 on loan at Plymouth Argyle as they avoided the drop.
He will be hoping to keep the likes of Ben Gibson and Michael Rose out of the side consistently for the whole campaign as he aims to one day break into Spurs’ first-team squad for good.
Michael Rose
Michael Rose joined Stoke last summer, putting pen to paper on a two-year deal on a free transfer from Coventry City after four years with the Sky Blues.
The 28-year-old was a near ever-present in his debut season at the bet365 Stadium as he made 41 appearances in all competitions, but suffered an unfortunate ankle injury in a pre-season friendly at Crewe Alexandra in July, and has not long returned to full training.
He may struggle to get regular game-time this season with Phillips, Gibson, and Ben Wilmot all likely ahead of him in the centre-back pecking order right now, and is set to leave at the end of the campaign as it stands.
Andrew Moran
Stoke brought in creative midfielder Andrew Moran on a season-long loan from Brighton & Hove Albion this summer, with no option to buy included in the deal, and he has already set about showing his quality in his first few games at the club.
The 20-year-old has previously impressed on loan in the Championship, with four goals and nine assists in 41 games in all competitions at Blackburn Rovers last season, so he will be hoping to do the same in the Potteries for the rest of the campaign.
Jack Bonham
Jack Bonham has not been able to nail down a consistent starting spot in goal for the Potters since his arrival from Gillingham in 2021 but has featured a lot more than a number two keeper would expect, due to injuries, player sales and loans being recalled.
Bonham was signed as third-choice by Michael O’Neill but ended up playing 17 times in all competitions in his debut campaign, then featured 27 times in 2022/23 and even played 16 games last season.
He signed a contract extension last November to see him through to next summer, so he is set to leave after four years at the club in 2025 if nothing changes.
Enda Stevens
Left-back Enda Stevens was also set to leave Stoke in May but accepted a contract extension to keep him at the club until next summer, despite a largely tough first season in the Potteries.
He joined the club from Sheffield United last summer on an initial one-year deal, and was a fairly consistent starter at the beginning of the campaign, but suffered a calf injury in December that kept him out of action until March.
The Republic of Ireland international came back into the fold and impressed towards the end of the campaign, prompting the Potters to offer him a new 12-month deal, but he has been hampered by injuries again in the last few months and will find it tough to oust Eric Bocat when he returns to action soon, so is likely to seek pastures new next summer at 34-years-old.
Frank Fielding
Veteran goalkeeper Frank Fielding only signed a short-term contract with Stoke upon his arrival on a free transfer in December 2021 to cover for injuries but he has since penned three different contract extensions at the club to date, with the latest coming at the end of last season as he extended his deal for another year.
He has been largely restricted to a role as a spectator while with the Potters, but that is understandable since he is now 36, and he is likely a very useful, experienced head to have in the dressing room when younger players need advice.
It remains to be seen whether he will be offered another deal before his contract ends next summer, and if he isn’t, it may spell the end of his 17-year career that has seen him make 364 appearances for 10 different clubs.
