“Maybe he is a back-up option” – Stoke City fan pundit reacts as club eye Derby County player | OneFootball

This article is part of Football League World’s ‘Terrace Talk‘ series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Stoke City will be looking to put together a squad that is capable of challenging for promotion during the 2022/23 Championship season, with the latest campaign slipping away into mediocrity.

One player that the Potters are currently monitoring, in an attempt to strengthen the right-back position is Derby County’s Nathan Byrne, as per a report from Football Insider.

The report states that the 29-year-old is also being watched by Millwall and Preston North End, following the Rams’ relegation to League One.

Addressing the Potters’ reported interest in the experienced defender, FLW’s Stoke City fan pundit Ben Rowley said: “Without knowing an awful lot about him, he seems to have done well in a valiant Derby team last season.

“I know that he plays as a full-back, rather than what I expect Stoke to go for next season in wing-backs and I expect right-back to be a priority for Stoke heading into the summer transfer window, to balance out Josh Tymon on the other side who done exceptionally well last season.

“Being a priority, I imagine that we’ll be keeping our options open for the time being and looking for someone of real quality to bring in.

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“I’m not saying we’ll bring in anyone of any value like Djed Spence but I expect us to really go for it and maybe he is a back-up option.”

The verdict

With Ben Wilmot playing a large proportion of the campaign in an unfamiliar right-back position, it does appear that the position will be prioritised this summer.

Wilmot impressed when tasked with operating in a full-back position, however, his future with the Potters will be in a central defensive role.

Byrne was one of Derby’s top performers last season, a year where the more experienced heads in the team played a vital role in the development of the younger members of the squad who were exposed to regular first-team football.