Stoke City set to beat Bristol City to Wolves man | OneFootball

Stoke City have pulled ahead of Bristol City in the race for Wolverhampton Wanderers midfielder Luke Cundle, according to TEAMtalk.

The Potters were very busy during the summer transfer window, with former boss Alex Neil having the opportunity to put his stamp on the squad following some very underwhelming league finishes.

They recruited plenty of capable players, including Enda Stevens who won promotion with Sheffield United shortly before making the move to Staffordshire.

Unfortunately for Stoke, this rebuild hasn't paid dividends thus far, with Neil struggling during the early stages of the campaign before being dismissed by the Potters' board.

Steven Schumacher has come in as his replacement since then - and the ex-Plymouth Argyle manager will be keen to ensure he has a say in the club's transfer business to maximise his and the club's chances of being successful during the second half of the campaign.

One man he seems to be keen on is Cundle, who was brought in by Plymouth on loan during the previous window, with Stoke's interest not coming as a major surprise because of that.

TEAMtalk believes talks are progressing for Cundle to make a £1.5m move to Stoke.

He is reportedly set to be recalled from Plymouth due to the interest in him - and although Bristol City are also keen on him - it looks as though he will be heading to the bet365 Stadium.

Stoke have what they need in place to secure his signature and with the player already striking a verbal agreement on personal terms, this deal could end up being confirmed by the start of next week.

Luke Cundle could be a very good addition for Stoke City

Cundle could end up being an excellent acquisition - and it's not as if the club haven't checked him out before the start of the window.

According to TEAMtalk, he was identified as a target shortly after Schumacher's arrival and that would have allowed Ricky Martin and other key figures to check whether they also wanted to sign him.

Schumacher does deserve the opportunity to put his stamp on the team and the Potters may only benefit from signing Cundle considering he's already familiar with the Potters' boss and his method.

That should help the midfielder to settle in fairly quickly and that's a real plus considering he's coming in mid-season and won't have a pre-season to adapt.

He's also only 21 at this point, so he could be sold on for a decent amount in the future.