Sad Departure: 2 key player departed stoke city just now…..

Steven Schumacher is braced for a whirlwind of transfer activity at Stoke City over the next month-and-a-half even if he is reluctantly patient just at the moment.

Schumacher has welcomed three new signings into his squad so far and insists there is relentless work going on behind the scenes to bring in more – at the same time as spinning plates trying to make sure that the squad ends up tight and balanced.

A centre-forward remains the obvious but not only target and negotiations should step up on that score over the next week or so as Premier League managers welcome back players from Euro 2024 and Copa America, loosening their grip on others.

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Emre Tezgel scored twice in his 45-minute run out at Chester on Thursday night as he got a chance to stake his claim to be a bit part of things over the next few months. Stoke will have a decision to make on that front whatever happens, with loan suitors keeping check on his availability, as with Nathan Lowe and even Niall Ennis.

It is a different pressure to last summer, when Stoke needed numbers as well as quality, and if there is still a hunger to get things done as quickly as possible it is more important to make sure the deals are the right ones.

Schumacher said: “Yeah we are (looking for front players) – and a few other different areas of the pitch. The squad is looking strong. We’ve pretty much got two players at the moment for every position that are fit. We’re in decent shape but we would like to improve the squad further if we can as well.”

He added: “The quicker we can get players in the better because it gives us more chance to work with them in pre-season and be ready for when August comes. We are actively looking, we’re working really hard behind the scenes.

“But we won’t bring in signings for the sake of it. I’ve said from Day One that we need to get the right people in, the right personalities, good characters and people who will help to improve the team.