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Losing Nathan Collins would make this a failed transfer window for Stoke City

By Matt Bernstein

STOKE ON TRENT, ENGLAND - NOVEMBER 24: Nathan Collins of Stoke City during the Sky Bet Championship match between Stoke City and Norwich City at Bet365 Stadium on November 24, 2020 in Stoke on Trent, England. Sporting stadiums around the UK remain under strict restrictions due to the Coronavirus Pandemic as Government social distancing laws prohibit fans inside venues resulting in games being played behind closed doors. (Photo by Robbie Jay Barratt - AMA/Getty Images)
STOKE ON TRENT, ENGLAND - NOVEMBER 24: Nathan Collins of Stoke City during the Sky Bet Championship match between Stoke City and Norwich City at Bet365 Stadium on November 24, 2020 in Stoke on Trent, England. Sporting stadiums around the UK remain under strict restrictions due to the Coronavirus Pandemic as Government social distancing laws prohibit fans inside venues resulting in games being played behind closed doors. (Photo by Robbie Jay Barratt - AMA/Getty Images) /
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Losing Nathan Collins would make this a failed transfer window for Stoke City

Bad news Stoke City fans – It’s been recently reported that Premier League clubs, specifically Arsenal and Burnley, are looking to acquire young Stoke City standout, Nathan Collins. If Stoke lose their young defender and fail to add any more players on permanent deals, this will likely go down as a failed transfer window for the club.

Up to this point, Stoke City have been active during January, seeing four players come in – Rabbi Matondo, Rhys Norrington-Davies, Jack Clarke, and Alfie Doughty. Moving away from the club is young winger Thibaud Verlinden who is off to the Dutch side Fortuna Sittard.

The only player Stoke have actually acquired permanently is Alfie Doughty, who will still remain on loan at Charlton Athletic for the remainder of the season before coming to Stoke this summer. Rabbi Matondo does have an option to buy at the end his Stoke loan, but this is not guaranteed.

While the players coming in on loan have added depth to Stoke City, we could be realistically be looking back on this window, with loan players gone, thinking we could have done more…

Below is a short, but not that unrealistic, prediction of what the January window could look like.

Out: Nathan Collins, Thibaud Verlinden

In: Alfie Doughty

In on loan/returned: Rabbi Matondo, Rhys Norrington-Davies, Jack Clarke

Of course, Stoke still have time to add another player, and if the fee for Collins is as high as reported (around 10mill), Stoke might have some room to make an additional move. Losing a player like Collins would be a blow for Stoke as he, along with Harry Souttar and Tyrese Campbell, represent the future of the club in many ways. Luckily, Stoke are fairly deep with center-backs, and while losing Collins would see a downgrade in quality it would likely see an increase in playing time for Danny Batth and possibly Liam Lindsay.

Collins Season Recap

This has been a breakout season for Nathan Collins. The young defender has made 20 starts for the Potters and has been a mainstay in the starting squad all season. In fact, only Harry Souttar, Nick Powell, and Tommy Smith have more minutes logged for Stoke this season. Even when Stoke have been stretched by injuries, Collins has forced himself into the lineup making 7 starts at right-back. Watching Collins, it’s clear why top clubs are in line for him. He has a great blend of speed, physicality, and aggressiveness.

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