Stoke City would be wise to consider £0 swoop for ex-Swansea City man | OneFootball

The 32-year-old has over 300 appearances in the Championship.

Stoke City's defensive additions so far this summer have most definitely caught the eye.

Maksym Talovierov was one of the standouts in the Plymouth Argyle side who narrowly succumbed to relegation to League One last season, and the free transfer of veteran player Aaron Cresswell is seen by many as a coup, even at the age of 35.

However, full-back Lynden Gooch departed the club in favour of League One promotion challengers Huddersfield Town, which leaves Mark Robins with just one recognised right-back in Junior Tchamadeu.

The 21-year-old enjoyed a breakout year in the Potters' side last season, after being used sporadically in the 2023/24 campaign following his arrival from Colchester United, and looks set to once again be the first-choice for the upcoming term.

But, with Crystal Palace reportedly lurking in the shadows and monitoring his situation, there's no guarantee that Tchamadeu will remain at the bet365 Stadium beyond September 1st's transfer deadline.

Regardless, Mark Robins will be in need of a new right-back to back up Tchamadeu if he stays, and possibly even replace him if he goes, and free agent Cyrus Christie could fill that void.

Cyrus Christie could be a useful pickup for Stoke City this summer

Stoke City, at times last season, were criticised for being too inexperienced and naive, with their squad's average age of 24.1 representing the second youngest in the entire Championship.

This did allow for the likes of Million Manhoef, Bae Junho and Tchamadeu to step up and prove themselves in the second tier, but sometimes it was what people blamed a relatively poor season on.

Bringing in the likes of Talovierov and Sorba Thomas, two players who bring up the average age and come with good Championship experience, either recently or over time, is very useful for Mark Robins, who is looking to perhaps strike a better balance between exciting youngsters and experienced heads this season.

A report from journalist Pete O'Rourke via his X account on 21 July has revealed that Christie is weighing up a number of options in the Championship, as well as fielding interest from the MLS and Middle East.

Christie adds to that experience, having made 331 second-tier appearances in his career and has wound up playing for a number of sides who have challenged near the top, even securing Premier League promotion with Fulham twice.

Last season, Christie settled into the role of backup, starting just two Championship games for Swansea and making only 11 league appearances, despite being named in 34 matchday squads.

So, to add a 32-year-old with bags of experience and solid leadership who might be content with being a backup to a younger, more exciting up-and-comer, for free, seems a solid choice, and Stoke would be wise to pursue it later in the transfer window.

Cyrus Christie could still play regular minutes this season

The bonus of signing someone like Christie this season would also be that he can very much still do a job if given regular minutes, if Tchamadeu was poached by a Premier League side, or, unfortunately, was unavailable through injury.

His per 90-minute stats last season saw him top the centre-back charts in the Championship in aerial duals won, according to Fotmob, and it also wasn't too long ago that the 32-year-old was playing a decent part in the Hull City squad, which narrowly missed out on the play-offs under Liam Rosenior in the 2023/24 campaign.

Christie represents a typical low-risk, high-reward type of signing in that, for a free transfer, he won't be required to instantly come in and play starting minutes week in week out, but if required, he could do a solid job in Mark Robins' backline.

The main focus will be ensuring that Junior Tchamadeu remains at The bet365 Stadium, but if he were to leave, Christie wouldn't be a terrible replacement.