Would the arrival of these Spurs and Liverpool stars signal a new era at the Bet365 Stadium?

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Stoke City. The side of the Rory Delap long throw. The side of Robert Huth, Ryan Shawcross, Andy Wilkinson and co. kicking lumps out of Premier League strikers. The side of Charlie Adam dropping deep to hit a long ball to Peter Crouch and Cameron Jerome, and occasionally sticking it in the net from 60 yards. With rumours that Mark Hughes’ Stoke are close to deals for Joe Allen and Nacer Chadli, it truely puts an end to that era.

With Tony Pulis now long gone, Hughes has had time to build his own squad, and the Stoke ranks are full of more Barcelona youth products than Manchester United ones. A few years ago, it would have seemed unbelievable that the likes of Bojan would be lining up in the red and white stripes of Stoke, but Hughes has overseen a successful transition to a quicker style of passing possession football, and this summer looks set to complete that transition.

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In Joe Allen, Stoke could secure one of the best passers in the Premier League. With a pass completion rate of 85.4% last season, it is clear to see why Hughes sees Allen as the vital next step into converting a long ball team into a possession based team who look to get the ball forward with quick passes and movement, rather than long balls. Whilst Charlie Adam averaged 3.1 long balls per game on average last season, and Glenn Whelan averaged 2.8, Joe Allen averaged just 1.4. Allen’s signing, more than any other, shows the complete change from the Pulis era.

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Nacer Chadli is similar in many ways, a player who would never have fitted in the Pulis era Stoke. A quick and creative winger, Chadli has a reputation as being a bit lax when it comes to his defensive contributions, instead favouring to stay high and run at full-backs with the ball, rather than putting the ball straight into the box. Struggling for game time at White Hart Lane, a move for the Belgian gives him an opportunity to rebuild his career in Stoke and could well be perfect in a front three with the likes of Xherdan Shaqiri and Bojan if all can stay on form and fit.

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After an impressive 9th placed finish, 1 point ahead of the reigning champions Chelsea, Hughes will be hoping to push his side on to pressure for a place which will qualify the Potters for European football. With an increasing reputation in the football world, the club are no longer seen as overachievers, and as a stable Premier League club, it’s the next step.

In Hughes, they have a hugely experienced and talented manager who will be key to bringing in these targets, as has been made clear in the case of Joe Allen. With his own side now coming together, Stoke’s achievements in the coming season will be testament to the great work that he has done there, and the leadership of the club’s owners in backing the new boss.

Featured Image: All rights reserved by Chris of Arabia.