Frontrunner emerges as Stoke City and Blackburn Rovers battle for Cardiff City player | OneFootball

Stoke City have pulled clear of Blackburn Rovers as they look to seal a deal for Cardiff City's Ryan Wintle.

Stoke City are set to complete the signing of Ryan Wintle from Cardiff City ahead of competition from Blackburn Rovers.

The 27-year-old made 42 appearances in the Championship for the Bluebirds last season as they recorded a mid-table finish, but it has been apparent since that Erol Bulut is happy for the midfielder to move on as he prepares for a squad overhaul in the Welsh capital.

Both Blackburn and Stoke have been chasing Wintle, and journalist Darren Witcoop has confirmed that it’s the Potters who are in line to finalise the deal.

“Stoke now expected to pip Blackburn to the signing of Cardiff midfielder Ryan Wintle.”

Ryan Wintle will improve Stoke City

Steven Schumacher is looking to make his own mark on the Stoke squad ahead of his first full season in charge, and whilst Wintle isn’t the sort of signing that will attract major headlines, it could be a shrewd bit of business.

The former Crewe player, who actually started out in Stoke’s academy, has Championship experience having featured regularly for Cardiff in the past few years, so he knows what this league is all about.

He will bring an intensity to the midfield, and even if he isn’t the most eye-catching player, you can be sure that his teammates and the coaching staff will appreciate how he helps the group.

Ryan Wintle will welcome Stoke City opportunity

From the perspective of the player, this is also a good move, and you can see why he has opted to join Stoke over Blackburn.

Firstly, it was clear he wasn’t fancied by Bulut moving forward, so he needed to find a new club where he could get the game time that he wants at a crucial stage in his career.

Then, as mentioned above, there is a minor connection to the club, considering he was in the academy as a kid, and he was born in Staffordshire.

They will also hope to improve considerably under Schumacher, and in what could be a fairly open Championship next season, there’s no reason why they can’t try to finish in the top six, even if many clubs have the same aim.

Blackburn’s frustrating transfer window continues

This would be another setback for Rovers in the window, as they were obviously in the mix for Wintle, and he would’ve been a good addition for John Eustace.

The club have made some attacking additions, although they will only be replacements for Sammie Szmodics and Sam Gallagher, and there is a belief that Danny Batth will sign.

But, it’s clear that more work is needed on this Blackburn squad, and you do have sympathy for Eustace as he will have wanted more through the door by this stage.

So, missing out on Wintle is far from ideal, but the hierarchy at Ewood Park will rightly point out that there’s a month to go in the window, and it will be interesting to see how the XI looks when it shuts.