What Huddersfield Town manager Lee Grant said about Sorba Thomas' Stoke City transfer | OneFootball

Huddersfield Town manager Lee Grant has spoken out on winger Sorba Thomas' move to Stoke City.

Huddersfield Town manager Lee Grant believes winger Sorba Thomas' move to Stoke City is a good deal for all parties.

Thomas joined Huddersfield from non-league side Boreham Wood in January 2021, and he enjoyed a stunning first full season at the John Smith's Stadium as he scored three goals and provided 16 assists in 51 games to help his side reach the Championship play-off final, where they were beaten by Nottingham Forest.

However, Thomas has not quite been able to replicate that form in the subsequent years, and after spending the second half of the 2022-23 season on loan at Blackburn Rovers, he departed on a temporary basis again last summer following the Terriers' relegation to League One, this time making the move to French side Nantes.

Thomas scored one goal and provided three assists in 27 games for Nantes last season, but the Ligue 1 outfit decided against taking up their option to sign him permanently for around €4 million/£3.3m, and he has now completed a switch to Stoke for what Huddersfield have described as a "significant undisclosed fee".

The Potters are believed to have paid less than £2 million for Thomas, and Sporting Director Jon Walters expressed his delight at landing a player the club have "admired for some time", admitting that the Welsh international was "very much in demand".

Lee Grant reacts as Sorba Thomas swaps Huddersfield Town for Stoke City

Grant, who left his role as a coach at Ipswich Town to take over as Huddersfield manager last month, said the fee Stoke have paid for Thomas represents good business for the club, and he insisted that getting the deal done early in the summer will be beneficial for the Terriers as they continue their preparations for the new season.

"Stoke City have presented the Club with a generous offer for Sorba’s services and the player has shown a desire to pursue that opportunity, so it’s a deal that works for all concerned. I wish him nothing but the best with his new side," Grant told the club's official website.

"We’ve spoken publicly about our desire to have our business concluded as early as possible in this transfer window ahead of an incredibly important summer and pre-season, and that’s as true for departures as it is incoming players. The earlier we can have our squad settled and defined, the better.

"Having this agreed early allows us greater flexibility and clarity in the transfer market as we look to continue our work rebuilding the squad and bringing top class talent to the Club ahead of the new season."

Huddersfield Town were right to sell Sorba Thomas to Stoke City

There is no doubt that, on his day, Thomas can be an incredibly dangerous player, but he has struggled to deliver consistently since starring for Huddersfield in the 2021-22 season, and his loan spell with Nantes did not go to plan, so his signing is something of a risk for Stoke.

It seemed highly unlikely that Thomas was going to remain at the John Smith's Stadium in League One next season, so cashing in on him early in the summer is a sensible decision by the Terriers, and the fee received for the 26-year-old will help to bolster the club's transfer budget as Grant continues his rebuild.

Grant has spoken of the importance of getting business done quickly, and with two signings already through the door in Ryan Ledson and Marcus Harness and Thomas' future settled, the 42-year-old is certainly backing up his words with action.