Stoke City club captain Ryan Shawcross has committed his future to the club, signing a new four-year contract until 2021.

The defender celebrated his 10-year anniversary at the club earlier this month, and appears very happy to continue at the club.

The news comes after Stoke have signed three other centre-backs this summer, the most recent being the £16 million move for Kevin Wimmer from Tottenham Hotspur.

The quotes

Stoke’s Chief Executive Tony Scholes commented on the new deal, saying: “It has been a busy summer for us in the transfer market, and we’re delighted with the signings we’ve made. The renewal of Ryan’s contract, however, is as significant as any new signing we have made.

“It’s unusual in this day and age for a player to spend so long at one club.” Scholes told the club website. “Ryan has become synonymous with the progress the Club has made over the past decade and we’re delighted he has committed to at least another four years with us.” 

Embed from Getty Images

Where does this leave Stoke?

Stoke now have four centre-backs in the club in Shawcross, Wimmer, Bruno Martins Indi and on-loan Kurt Zouma.

With Mark Hughes favouring a three-at-the-back system this season, it’s likely that one of those four will be left out of the starting lineup.

However, all four have a right to start and the competition for places in that role will no doubt get the best out of them.

Hughes said that the priority this summer was to improve in defensive areas, and Stoke certainly have, coupled with the signing of Josh Tymon from Hull City.

It’s unlikely that this is the end of Stoke’s business on deadline day though, there are departures expected with Giannelli Imbula and Bojan linked with loan moves to France and Spain.

Fabian Delph has been strongly linked all summer with a move to the bet365 Stadium, but a deal is thought to have broken down, while the club have also been linked with a move for Vincent Janssen

VAVEL Logo
About the author
Jack Mceachen
Sports Journalist in Staffordshire University.