Stoke City fan pundit delivers verdict on player departure | 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 had a very frustrating 2021/22 campaign and slipped away from the play-off picture yet again to finish in 14th place under Michael O’Neill.

Heading into their fifth season since relegation from the Premier League, the Potters will not be able to splash the cash as they have done in previous summers, but there is a strong core in the team that could be enhanced with some shrewd additions in the off-season.

O’Neill has one season left on his contract at the bet365 Stadium and the Northern Irishman will be desperate to have another crack at pushing for promotion with this promising Stoke squad.

FLW’s Stoke City fan pundit, Ben Rowley, shared his reaction to James Chester’s departure, as was announced on the club’s website yesterday.

Speaking to Football League World, Rowley said: “I don’t think you’ll find a Stoke fan in the land who will be disappointed about James Chester leaving.

“Which is a shame because he started his time at Stoke, about two and a half years ago, as a really important component for Michael O’Neill’s side.

“We didn’t have any centre backs who could play out from the back, and James Chester enabled that to some extent and helped keep us up really.

“It’s a shame for his career as a whole that he was so injury prone, because that’s what has ruined him at Stoke as well.

“He’s just deteriorated physically and we were really sad to see him on the team sheet by the end, because he was just producing such abysmal performances.

Quiz: Which club did Stoke City sign these 24 players from in the 2000s?

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Tony Dorigo

“I wish him all the best in what he does next, he certainly was a great player, he was a decent player for us at one point, he seems a nice lad as well.

“But he did become a bit of a scapegoat towards the end, it’s definitely the right decision to let him go.”