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[FM22] But can he do it on a cold rainy night in..


DavidBeckham
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Improving the Squad

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In addition to the Lorenzo Lucca's transfer which was completed last March, 7 new signings were brought in to plug the gaps left behind by the departing players in the summer.

Goalkeepers

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We failed to extend Jeroen Zoet's work permit to keep him at the club on another loan deal and Dominik Greif was brought in by Rory for 500k pounds to provide some much needed competition for Joe Buršík. The Slovak is an absolute giant in goal and we are all hoping that he can win a couple of penalty shootouts for us in the cup competitions in the upcoming campaign. 

Defenders

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Rene did well for us as the back-up left-back but when a player of Enzo Díaz's quality emerges on the market, you can't turn the opportunity down. The Argentinian was unfortunately relegated from the Prem with Southampton last season and was desperate for another shot in world's top league competition. That was exactly what we were able to offer and the naturally fit and aggressive left-back will push Josh Tymon very hard for the starting left-back spot.

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We managed to convert Peter Etebo into a right-back but he failed to establish himself as a Prem-level defender. Man United was looking to offload Diogo Dalot and we were all pleasantly surprised by the low asking price of 6.25 million pounds. It was an easy deal to do as the Portuguese is an obvious upgrade in our right-back position and Rory now has two pairs of wing-backs with similar levels of abilities to choose from.

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Reece Oxford was brought in as our third-choice center-back as we were unable to extend the loan deal of Óscar Mingueza following his decision to join Burnley permanently. The ex-West Ham United academy graduate was once tipped to be the next starting center-back for England and we are all hoping that he can finally fulfil his potential at the bet365 Stadium.

Midfielders

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Praxedes was another decent find by our scouting department and Rory wasted little time to approve the 6.5 million pounds transfer. With the departure of the injury-prone Felipe Carballo, the all-rounded Brazilian will get lots of game time in both the holding midfield and left-sided no. 8 positions in the upcoming campaign.

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The arrival of Răzvan Marin was due to the broken ankle suffered by Clinton Mola close to the start of the season and Rory didn't want to go into the season with a hole in our midfield for 4 months. The Romanian is like a right-footed Praxedes and we are all expecting him to play a crucial role in our journey to progress further up the table. 

Attackers

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Benjamin Nygren is our final addition of the summer and Rory felt that he will be well worth the 9.5 million pounds spent by the end of the season. Following the arrival of Lorenzo Lucca, Rory is looking to convert Adam Hložek into a right-sided inside forward and the Swedish forward will push him hard for the starting role.

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  Three of the new signings will begin the campaign in our starting eleven and we are now all set and ready to go!

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On 20/07/2022 at 03:08, TheGoodRebel said:

First XI is looking rather tasty now. It's a shame what happened with Oxford IRL. Hopefully you can fulfil his potential! 

Cheers mate! The starting lineup has definitely improved from last campaign but we are facing more injuries this time round! As for Oxford, it hasn't really worked out as he hasn't managed to break apart our 1st choice central defence, and he's already moaning for more 1st team football :(

On 20/07/2022 at 15:08, karanhsingh said:

Nice team, looks like you strengthened the squad well in the summer.

Thanks mate! We keep moving and progressing :D

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Nice work. Lots of money, but all prudent, excellent value signings. And that’s the Premier League!  Both wingbacks are especially nice signings.

Like how you’ve filled out depth as well, think that’s a smart move. Rather than overpaying for a top player or two, you’ve improved across the squad.

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On 21/07/2022 at 23:07, 13th Man said:

Nice work. Lots of money, but all prudent, excellent value signings. And that’s the Premier League!  Both wingbacks are especially nice signings.

Like how you’ve filled out depth as well, think that’s a smart move. Rather than overpaying for a top player or two, you’ve improved across the squad.

Thanks mate! We had to spread out the money as the squad required strengthening in lots of positions! Furthermore, the big money moves aren't of the right quality too! The really top players aren't willing to join us at the moment :)

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Flying High for now

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We've all been enjoying the season a bit too much so far!

Premier League

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Unbelievably, we are sitting 4th at the mid-way mark, but we are all aware that we will fall out of the Champions League places at some point in the second half of the campaign. Things have gone really smoothly and we have not had that typical blip of every season. There have been more injuries so far but our key players have largely remained available throughout the 19 games so far. All these point to the fact that good times won't last, but we are all enjoying the dizzy heights for now!

Carabao Cup

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We have had good luck with the Carabao Cup draws too, and our second stringers have performed admirably to help us progress all the way to the semis. Cash-rich Chelsea awaits us at the next hurdle and Rory will continue to trust the backup players so this is likely to be the end of the adventure for us. 

Star Performer

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After one and a half seasons in England's top league competition, Josh has established himself as a Premier League level wing-back and he has been by far our player of the "half-season". His best work came at the attacking end of the field, creating 7 for his team-mates in just 18 starts. If he can keep up his assists' ratio, you will struggle to find a better performing left-back in the Premier League this season. 

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We have already begun work in the new year and there are just 8 more games to go :eek:

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9 hours ago, BoxToBoxFM said:

Great work in this first half of the season although it looks so tight amongst the European places. Hopefully you can keep it up this form for the rest of the season!

Cheers mate! We will definitely need everything to go our way if we want to stay in the European places!

7 hours ago, deltablue said:

Hopefully Europe beckons.

We will definitely do our best mate! :D

6 hours ago, karanhsingh said:

Great form! Josh is a bona fide FM legend that's for sure. 

I feel that he has actually gotten slightly worse on FM22 attributes-wise! However, the level of performances remained high! Long may it continue!  

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22 hours ago, TheGoodRebel said:

Brilliant performance! Here’s hoping you can maintain your form and cement a place in the Champions League! 

Will you be strengthening in January to maintain the push?

Thanks mate! We decided against strengthening the squad in January eventually as we wanted to keep some money in the bank for another Lucca-style signing! ;)

10 hours ago, 13th Man said:

Great work in the first half. Especially if you’ve had injuries! Shows the wisdom of making all those depth signings!

Cheers mate! Our squad is definitely deeper now and we were able to cope with numerous injuries in midfield as we have a versatile pool! :D

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Rory loves doing these big deals in February-March. It allows us to get the best bargains as we do not have teams bidding for them at the same time. Lorenzo Lucca was also brought in around the same time last year. We can't wait to see them battle it out for the lone Pressing Forward spot!

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21 hours ago, SixPointer said:

Just catching up! Great promotion. and boy that squad overhaul for the first year in prem, worked wonders tho. Some big signings second season as well and now Sesko. Stoke are going places!!

Thanks mate! We had no choice but to strengthen the squad year on year as we didn't have enough Prem-quality players/players with enough potential in the original squad! The squad building aspect of the game also makes the save fun for me to be honest! And Sesko! I absolutely can't wait to see how he does for us!

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Season Review 2023-24

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The Potters are back in Europe! 

Premier League

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Rory managed to lead the boys to a 5th-place finish in the end, and it was no mean feat as we had the second lowest wage budget in the league, and we weren't expected to finish anywhere near the European places. Onwards and upwards!

Carabao Cup

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What a run we've had in the Carabao Cup! The backup players were unbelievable in the journey, and no one expected that semi-final win against Chelsea. Liverpool were far too good in the final though and despite us falling at the final hurdle, the boys deserved full credit for taking us there. We go again!

FA Cup

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We were also beaten by another much better side in the FA Cup quarter-finals, but we managed to push Man United all the way at Old Trafford and were extremely unlucky to lose on penalties :(

Best Eleven

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The heroes who brought European football back to the bet365 Stadium!

Top 3 Players 

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The biggest surprise of our season! Billy Gilmour was also with us on a loan deal last campaign but he didn't really manage to break into the 1st team. He took his time and finally managed to establish himself in the 1st 11 in a very productive second half of the season. He had 24 goal contributions in just 26 starts and we are absolutely delighted that Chelsea has allowed him to stay for another campaign :D

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Anel Ahmedhodžić has come a long way since joining us in our maiden season in the Premier League. He signed for a mere 2 million pounds and his consistent performances have now attracted the attention of the big boys. Thankfully, we managed to convince him to extend his contract with us and remove that irritating 39 million pounds release clause!

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He's one of our own, He's one of our own, Josh Tymon, He's one of our own! Our first-choice left-back is also the first choice in the Team of the Season and Rory was so proud to see him improve his level of performances considerably this campaign. Being Stoke's sole entry in the Premier League's Team of the Season, the Englishman is by far our player of the season! \o/

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With around 50 million pounds to spend, we face another busy summer deepening the squad for our first season back in Europe! Exciting times lie ahead!

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European football :applause: as a Scotsman always nice to see Billy Gilmour doing well.

Surprised that  ronnigen Jorgensen never blew up for you. I managed Odd in fm21 and he was outstanding, with me working in Norway I’ve tracked him and he seems the real deal in real life. Would expect him to move to a bigger European club soon.

he actually signed for Feyenoord from Juventus in my Happel save. 

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On 31/07/2022 at 10:07, TheGoodRebel said:

Well done on qualifying for Europe! Some impressive statistics there for Gilmour, Tymon and Ahmedhodzic!

Thanks mate! All three have had stellar campaigns for us! :D

On 31/07/2022 at 15:28, SixPointer said:

European football :applause: as a Scotsman always nice to see Billy Gilmour doing well.

Surprised that  ronnigen Jorgensen never blew up for you. I managed Odd in fm21 and he was outstanding, with me working in Norway I’ve tracked him and he seems the real deal in real life. Would expect him to move to a bigger European club soon.

he actually signed for Feyenoord from Juventus in my Happel save. 

Billy has performed way above everyone's expectations and he just has the knack of laying the final passes for the goal-scorers. What an absolute bargain he has been for us! 

Filip Rønningen Jørgensen was excellent for us last season but he had just been outdone by Billy in that Mezzala role this campaign! It's a pity that Juventus wants considerable money for his loan deal now and we may not even extend his loan deal in the upcoming campaign :(

On 31/07/2022 at 17:44, deltablue said:

I hope you have fun in Europe.

We definitely will! Hope to have you around for the fun! :) 

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Quality > Quantity

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Rory decided to go quality rather than quantity in the summer transfer window.

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The 1st signing was made really early, even before the transfer window opened and it was a big one. Yes, we already have Lucca but he is the only European-level striker in the squad and Rory wanted more options and competition for the lone Pressing Forward role. When a player of Benjamin Šeško's quality is available for just 14.25 million pounds, you can't turn the opportunity down and we are just thankful that we had enough left in the bank to complete the deal. Rory now faces a tough task giving enough game time to Benjamin and Lorenzo to keep them both happy in the squad.

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Rory tasked his recruitment team to look at all the players in the NxGn list, scout the ones who were interested to play for us, and this gem of a player pop up. Roony Bardghji was available for just 9.75 million pounds and the Swede reminded us so much of a young Salah. If Rory can get his development right, we have got a player on our books :D

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Our midfield looked light-weight at times last campaign and it was clear we needed to add muscle in that area. Conor Gallagher was Rory's choice and the Englishman was brought in for 16 million pounds after he failed to establish himself at Stamford Bridge. His aggression, work rate and fitness will hopefully take our midfield to the level which is required in European football. 

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Rory always wanted a left-footed center-back to play alongside Anel but we struggled to find one in the last few windows. Pascal Struijk was the only decent option on the market and we overpaid for him a little, splashing 22.5 million pounds to complete our summer transfer business. 

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  The four signings will start the campaign in the main eleven. Can they be our 'Fantastic Four'? Or will they be four flops? Bring on the new season! \o/

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On 06/08/2022 at 14:04, 13th Man said:

Those all look great signings. Last campaign you needed depth, this one added quality. Think you did well on both. The young Swede looks very exciting - not just good, but nicely intelligent too!

Thanks mate! We could've spread out the cash on more signings but decided on bringing in the players we really want eventually! Roony has fantastic ability for someone so young and we are very excited on what he can become!

16 hours ago, karanhsingh said:

Gallagher is an absolute beast as BBM, was captain for my Napoli side.

Cheers mate! That's so true! Gallagher has been the pick of the signings so far and 16 million pounds is an absolute snip!

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Fighting for Europe

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We face a very tough fight for European football in the rest of the campaign..

Premier League

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Looking at the league table in January, we are in the mix but the boys need to improve on our league form if Rory wants to secure European football for a second consecutive campaign.. 

Carabao Cup

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The backup players will not have a deep cup run this time round as we were eliminated in the quarter-finals by a very decent Chelsea outfit.

Europa League

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They did really well in their maiden European campaign though, topping our group impressively ahead of Dutch giants PSV on 13 points. Our European journey continues!

FA Cup

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We also managed to progress in the FA Cup, beating Watford 3-0 at home to progress into the 4th round where fellow Premier League side Wolves awaits us.

Star Performer

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Following the arrival of Sesko, Lorenzo has been given game time mostly in Europe and the cup competitions. He is doing his best to prove Rory's decision wrong, bagging 16 goals and creating a further 3 in just 14 starts. The Italian is very close to getting his place back in the league starting 11, and Rory is enjoying this selection headache a bit too much ;)

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On 10/08/2022 at 22:30, 13th Man said:

Solid first half! 
Funny about the selection headache up front. Its tough to keep two forwards happy in a one striker system but you still need to have two quality players. Being in Europe helps though!

Cheers mate! We are expecting the form to improve a little in the 2nd half of the campaign as we've played most of the top sides away!

As for the two big strikers, we have managed to keep both happy by rotating them in weeks with mid-week games, and that somehow stopped either of them complaining about 1st-team football so far. Long may it continue! :D 

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Season Review 2024-25

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Die Meister.. Die Besten.. Les grandes équipes.. THE CHAMPIONSSSS!

Premier League

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Stoke are in the Champions League! The boys managed to improve on our results with a better set of fixtures in the second half of the season, and we climbed to 4th at the end! What a campaign it has been! \o/

Europa League

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We had such a good run in Europe too, knocking out the likes of PSV, Standard, Dynamo and Wolfsburg along the way but we fell to Stade Rennais in the semis after Rory decided to rest our first 11 for the Premier League. The risk paid off in the end as we managed to secure Champions League football, but that was at the expense of our first European trophy. We all felt we made the right choice though!

FA Cup

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Rory hates facing Liverpool as we always struggle against them, both home and away. They were our nemesis in the FA Cup again, beating us in a convincing 5-2 victory at the bet365 Stadium as we were knocked out in the quarters. 

Carabao Cup

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It was another quarter-final cup exit as we were eliminated in a 1-2 away defeat against Chelsea. The quest for a domestic cup competition win continues!

Best Eleven

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The best 11 who helped us secure Champions League football!

Finances

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It's all about the money, money, money..

Top 3 Players 

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Despite playing second fiddle to Sesko for much of the campaign, Lorenzo Lucca managed 22 goals in just 20 starts and helped us to a deep cup run in the Europa League. We will be doing our best to convince him to stay with us for the foreseeable future as every team needs that kind of quality competition up top. Let's hope his thinking is aligned with ours!

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Benjamin Šeško didn't have a bad season either, bagging 23 goals in 34 starts as our main striker in the Premier League. Rory rated his mobility over Lorenzo's and decided to start him ahead of the Italian, but their performances have narrowed the gap between the strikers a little. Are you Team Sesko or Team Lucca? ;)

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Our player of the season is the signing who took our midfield to the next level in a very successful campaign. Conor Gallagher has already returned the 16 million pounds we paid for him last summer, bagging 7 and creating 8 from the Box To Box Midfielder role. What a player Conor has been for us and I don't think the elusive England call-up is too far away!

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Congrats on getting into the CL! Hate when you have to choose between maybe getting in the CL and maybe getting to a cup final, but it worked out.
Tough choice between the strikers. They’re both quality, Sesko with the speed and looks better in the build up, and Lucca is the better pure finisher….selection headaches of the good kind 

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16 hours ago, 13th Man said:

Congrats on getting into the CL! Hate when you have to choose between maybe getting in the CL and maybe getting to a cup final, but it worked out.
Tough choice between the strikers. They’re both quality, Sesko with the speed and looks better in the build up, and Lucca is the better pure finisher….selection headaches of the good kind 

Thanks mate! The risk of losing that cup final made the decision slightly easier too! And I think we're gonna keep Sesko as the 1st choice no. 9 and keep Lucca happy with Champions League football. Hope that works for another season! 

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Congratulations on the UCL spot! Fantastic recruitment! Gallagher looks epic for the engine room and provides nice balance with Gilmours ball playing ability. 
 

As for Sesko, Lucca am team both! I think it’s great how you’ve made I work with two top class strikers keeping both happy. Something I’ll definitely be looking to take to Ajax, providing competition for Esposito is a must.

Look forward to Rory’s next recruitment drive. How did the young swede do? Looks exciting 

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On 16/08/2022 at 13:17, SixPointer said:

Congratulations on the UCL spot! Fantastic recruitment! Gallagher looks epic for the engine room and provides nice balance with Gilmours ball playing ability. 
 

As for Sesko, Lucca am team both! I think it’s great how you’ve made I work with two top class strikers keeping both happy. Something I’ll definitely be looking to take to Ajax, providing competition for Esposito is a must.

Look forward to Rory’s next recruitment drive. How did the young swede do? Looks exciting 

Thanks mate! Gallagher has been so consistent for us, and Chelsea's loss is certainly our gain! ;) The Blues is also looking increasingly like our parent club with Gilmour staying on loan for a fourth season in a row! 

Having two quality strikers to rotate during the fixtures pile-up is really important! Agree that you can try doing the same with Esposito :D 

Roony Bardghji has been solid but unspectacular! He managed 4 goals and 7 assists in 33 starts! 

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Frustrating Summer

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No one expected such a tough summer when we managed to qualify for Champions League football..

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Hlozek, Nygren and Dalot all requested for transfers after they were unsettled by Champions League-level clubs. I thought we were one too? :(

Goalkeepers

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We signed Gavin Bazunu on loan from Man City as our back-up keeper after Dominik Greif decided that he no longer wanted to play second fiddle. The Irish shot-stopper is decent aerially and has good reflexes, and he will get the majority of his game time in the cup competitions.

Defenders

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Kaiky and Josip Šutalo were brought in while the second-half of last season was on-going, and they will be our 3rd and 4th-choice center-backs this campaign. They replace Taylor Harwood-Bellis and Felix Uduokhai, who was brought in on last January's deadline day after another player (Reece Oxford) left in search of Champions League football :mad:

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Dalot's sudden departure on deadline day left us scrambling for a replacement right-back, and the best we could find was Enock Kwateng. To be honest, we weren't too convinced by the Ghanaian but Rory is hopeful that his all-roundedness will help to plug the gap until a right-back of better quality surfaces in the market. 

Midfielders

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Mattias Svanberg was the only midfield addition this summer but we have high hopes for the Swede. He is incredibly all-rounded and can play in most of the central midfield roles, and he will add Champions League quality in our starting 11 in the upcoming campaign.

Attackers

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We have a new pair of left-sided inside forwards to replace the outgoing Hlozek and Mboula. Dominik Szoboszlai spent most of his career playing in central midfield but we feel that some of his qualities can be useful if he is retrained in the inside forward position. Similarly, Jonathan Burkardt isn't natural down the wings but we want his physicality and work rate down our left flank. Our success this season will be hugely dependent on how they can mend the hole left behind by Hlozek's departure. 

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Yusuf Demir came in on loan to replace the outgoing Nygren on the opposite flank. PSG's loss is our gain as they weren't able to offer Yusuf the first-team football he badly craved. The Austrian Messi will compete with Roony for the right wing role in the starting 11. 

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We now have more depth in the attacking positions but the squad is definitely weaker in the right-back position following Dalot's departure..

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..and the cash brought in from the huge departures meant we will definitely be quite busy this January!

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Unbelievable Start

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Everything has gone our way in the first half of the campaign!

Premier League

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We are flying so high up in the table, but things will definitely go downhill from here as we face four of the big six away in the second half of the season. With fixtures pileup, injuries and the usual season blip to come, we will most certainly slide back down but let's just enjoy the dizzy heights while we can! :D

Carabao Cup

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We had decent cup draws all the way and we now face West Brom in the semi-finals. Could this be Rory's first domestic cup competition win? The second stringers will have to do it though..

Champions League

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..but we are quietly confident as they have outperformed our expectations so far this campaign. We were drawn into a relatively easy group in the Champions League and the second-choice players performed admirably to top the group. Shakhtar awaits us in the first knockout round!

Star Performer

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Dominik started most of the league games on the bench but he always made such lasting impression when he came on that Rory felt that he is the pick of the bunch so far. The 15.5 million pound summer signing scored 9 and created 3 in just ten starts, and we can't wait to see how he does in the second half of the season \o/

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Good business over the summer, with a tough deadline day panic!

Great first half too! Are you beating everyone soundly or has there been a bit of luck?  Either way you have a nice cushion between you and Leicester in 5th.

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On 24/08/2022 at 13:13, 13th Man said:

Good business over the summer, with a tough deadline day panic!

Great first half too! Are you beating everyone soundly or has there been a bit of luck?  Either way you have a nice cushion between you and Leicester in 5th.

Thanks mate! The panicky summer lowered my expectations but the team has performed really well! Our wins have been good for value so far and we are hoping that the tougher fixtures in the second half of the campaign don't push us back down the table!

On 24/08/2022 at 20:35, deltablue said:

I'm sure the crowd are chanting Szoboszlai's name.

They certainly are! He has been solid cutting in from the left wing! ;)

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Season Review 2025-26

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That's exactly how everyone felt after an absolutely crazy campaign..

Premier League

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Unbelievably, we somehow managed to sustain a title challenge all the way but we fell short in the end, losing out to Liverpool by a single point. We are all proud but there is inevitable disappointment. Mixed feelings.

Champions League

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The story was similar in Europe. We didn't quite know how we managed to progress all the way to the finals, knocking out the likes of Liverpool and Arsenal along the way. We did begin to play our 1st choice players from the quarters though. The end was really anti-climatic, and it seemed like we were outclassed from the scoreline but our xG was actually higher. Glory was so near yet so far :(

FA Cup

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We didn't do quite well in the FA Cup, but the exit was understandable as we were facing a strong Man City side away in a 0-3 defeat. 

Carabao Cup

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Rory bagged his first silverware! Compared to the bigger trophies, the Carabao Cup win seems like a consolation but we will take it! We were really lucky with the cup draws this time round and the second string didn't disappoint as we beat Southampton 3-2 in the final to lift the trophy. We are all hoping that this is the start of something!

Best Eleven

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The nearly men but they are still heroes in my eyes :**)

Top 3 Players 

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I would like to give an honourable mention to Tyrese Campbell. He's not exactly first choice but he has been with us since the start, and the Englishman is still going strong. Making full use of his game time in the cup games, Tyrese managed 20 goal contributions in just 19 starts in a very productive campaign. I don't know how far Rory can take this Stoke side to, but I'm certain that Tyrese will be there when the journey ends :)

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The excellent Italian managed to dislodge Sesko from the starting 11 in the second half of the campaign, and he ended up scoring 20 crucial goals and creating a further 8 in a very solid campaign. The fight between Lorenzo Lucca and Benjamin Sesko continues for another season!

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Our Captain Marvel. Our leader at the back. Our main set-piece threat. The only Stoke player in the Premier League's Team of the Year. Anel Ahmedhodžić is our Player of the Season \o/

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Going to have to echo both posts above me here - Really great work in a short time and I always like when a player can stick with you and perform well even when the club's status changes dramatically.  Heartbreaking to get so close to glory and come short, but still an impressive feat...and you did win the League Cup, so there's that!

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On 30/08/2022 at 13:09, SixPointer said:

Talk about so close but yet so far……. Unbelievable what you’ve done at Stoke so far and on the cusp of legendary status!

Thanks mate! It was certainly anti-climatic but the fact that we are challenging this early makes things better! :D

On 01/09/2022 at 00:50, deltablue said:

Good to see Campbell has lasted the distance with you.

Definitely mate! But he's starting to moan about the lack of football! Oh no :(

On 01/09/2022 at 13:19, 13th Man said:

Going to have to echo both posts above me here - Really great work in a short time and I always like when a player can stick with you and perform well even when the club's status changes dramatically.  Heartbreaking to get so close to glory and come short, but still an impressive feat...and you did win the League Cup, so there's that!

Cheers mate! I'm trying my very best to keep Bursik, Tymon and Campbell with me till the end but Campbell is starting to get frustrated! And yes League Cup! Let's hope it's an indication of things to come! :brock:

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Struggling to find value..

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We've struggled to find value on the market all summer, and players whom we are interested to bring in as backups cost at least 35 million pounds..

Defenders

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Juan Miranda was Rory's first signing of the summer and the Spanish left-back was brought in to replace the outgoing Enzo Diaz, who is approaching the wrong end of his thirties. He cost us 33 million pounds, but we had little choice as we didn't want to settle for less quality. With money available in the bank, we went ahead to do the deal.

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At the opposite side of the field, Neco Williams came in for a massive 37 million pounds fee but he was the only right-back of 1st-team quality who was valued below 70 million pounds. Rory had no choice but to sign the cheque. The Welsh right wing-back is excellent going forward and we are hoping that his assists can pay back some of the cash we splashed on him. He replaces the outgoing Jack Stacey, who is entering the last year of his contract in his thirties. 

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Eric Kahl was brought in on deadline day following Josh Tymon's long-term injury suffered in pre-season, and we are thankful that he was available for a mere 7 million pounds as we have spent quite a bit on full-backs this summer. The all-rounded left-back will fill the gap in the squad while we nurse Josh back to full fitness. 

Midfielders

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Matt O'Riley was brought in last January but he didn't really manage to bag first-team football before the end of last campaign. As such, he will be like a new signing for us this season and the Englishman will get lots of game time as our Mezzala in the left-sided no. 8 position following Clinton Mola's departure.  

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Following 30-year-old Razvan Marin's departure, we needed a new Regista and we were delighted to hear that Johnny had a release clause of 10.75 million pounds. Rory loves how the American is decent at almost every aspect of the game and he will challenge Mattias Svanberg for the first-team spot.  

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When there is little value on the transfer market, you turn to loans and that's exactly what Rory did. Ellyes Skhiri is already 31 but he can still run all day and Rory admires his energy on the pitch. He will replace Billy Gilmour in the squad, whom Rory decided against signing permanently as the squad needed more physicality. The Tunisian completes the trio of midfield arrivals and the summer's transfer businesses.

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The only new additions in the starting eleven are the full-backs and we aren't really sure if we are entering the season in a better state. One thing is for sure.. sleepless nights lie ahead for Rory!

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Season Review 2026-27

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We are the nearly men again!

Premier League

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Apart from Liverpool, the league had been really competitive this season, especially in the European spots. We are just relieved to secure Champions League football after a hell of a roller coaster ride. It was no mean feat by the boys as we were only tipped by the media to bag Europa League football. We go again next season!

Champions League

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After last season's final defeat, we managed to progress very deep in Europe's elite competition again. We also managed to match Haaland-led PSG all the way in the semis, but were defeated agonisingly in the penalty shoot-out after Josh Tymon missed the decisive kick :( Heartbreaking! 

FA Cup

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We lost another cup final after Arsenal defeated us narrowly at the final hurdle. The boys are getting really close to the silverwares as we have progressed deep in multiple competitions. Rory is hopeful that we will add more to our trophy cabinet soon with a couple of quality additions this summer.

Carabao Cup

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As the competition's defending champions, we did not perform well this time round but we were also really unlucky with the cup draw. Man United were our opponents at the first hurdle and it came too soon for our second 11, going out in a narrow 1-2 defeat. 

Best Eleven

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The nearly men again but we are getting closer!

Top 3 Players 

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New signing Neco Williams slotted seamlessly into our starting 11 and had a solid first season at right-back. He ended the campaign with a respectable 7 assists, and we are hoping that he can build on this tally as he has decent attacking abilities.  Trent who? ;) 

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32 goal contributions (26 goals and 6 assists) in 29 starts. Enough said. Benjamin Sesko is back!

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The Hungarian found his way into our starting 11 this campaign, and didn't look back since as he ended the campaign with an impressive 14 goals and 19 assists in just 25 starts. Dominik Szoboszlai's goal contribution ratio from midfield is even better that Sesko's, and this is also why he's our Player of the Season by a distance \o/

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