Stoke City and Hull City in race to sign 7-goal striker | OneFootball

Stoke City are searching for a new forward to add to their squad ahead of the 30 August deadline

Stoke City and Hull City are targeting a move for Australian forward Thomas Waddingham before the window closes next week.

According to Teamtalk, the Potters are keen to add to their attacking options ahead of the 30 August deadline, with Football Insider reporting that the Tigers will provide competition in the race to his signature..

The Championship club have been linked with a number of players already this summer, but have yet to get deals over the line for a striker.

Waddingham currently plies his trade in his native Australian with A-League side Brisbane Roar.

The 19-year-old bagged seven goals from 23 appearances for the team last season, as they finished ninth in the table (all stats from Fbref).

Stoke City eye Thomas Waddingham

Stoke have a reported interest in Leicester City’s Tom Cannon, but are still awaiting a decision on the forward’s future.

Fulham’s Jay Stansfield is also on the second division side’s shortlist, but Marco Silva has made it clear with recent comments, via West London Sport, that the 21-year-old is not for sale.

With that in mind, Waddingham has also emerged as a possible target for Stoke, who are keen to strengthen their forward line in the coming days, but they face competition from Hull.

The teenager has impressed in Australia, and is considered one of the brightest young prospects coming through the division.

His tally of seven goals was just one fewer than the record best of eight by a teenager in the league’s history.

It remains to be seen what kind of fee will be needed to convince Brisbane Roar to cash in on the youngster, or whether he’s keen on the move.

Stoke and Hull are running out of time to get the transfer over the line, with just over a week remaining in the window.

Steven Schumacher will be looking to bolster his side’s options after a mixed start to the new campaign, having won one and lost one.

Stoke City’s 2024 summer transfer activity

Stoke have had a busy summer so far, and more incomings could yet follow the seven new faces to come through this transfer window.

Bosun Lawal, Sam Gallagher, Eric-Junior Bocat, Viktor Johansson and Ben Gibson have all joined on a permanent basis.

Meanwhile, Andrew Moran and Lewis Koumas have signed on loan from Brighton and Liverpool respectively.

Stoke have until next Friday to finalise any remaining deals before the window closes for the remainder of the calendar year.

Next up in the league is a home game against West Brom on 24 August.

Waddingham would be an interesting addition for Stoke

Waddingham is a young and exciting prospect that performed quite well in the A-League last year.

It would be a big risk to think he could make the step up to the Championship already at only 19-years-of-age.

However, if the Potters can agree reasonable terms on a deal, then it could prove a very shrewd move to make.

Waddingham certainly has a lot of potential, and if he can develop that potential and turn into a top star then this could become a very lucrative deal for the club long-term.

But it also may mean that he’s not the consistent, starting striker that this team needs right now either.