In: Goran Popov (season loan, Dynamo Kyiv), Michael Kightly (£3m, Wolverhampton Wanderers), Geoff Cameron (£1.8m, Houston Dynamo), Jamie Ness (free transfer, Rangers)
Out: Danny Collins (£500,000, Nottingham Forest), Jonathan Woodgate (free transfer, Middlesbrough), Andrew Davies (free transfer, Bradford City), Ricardo Fuller (released), Salif Diao (released)
If they were an Olympian: Justin Gatlin. Not loved by many but achievements are impressive, has used questionable methods to achieve success. Unlikely to be most neutrals choice.
Whisper it, but Stoke may actually be getting worse rather than better, as they enter their fifth consecutive season in the top flight, which in itself is a fantastic achievement for manager Tony Pulis. After finishing 12th and 11th in their first two seasons in the league, the Potters have finished 13th and 14th in their previous two. This can partly be explained by the club going far in the F.A. Cup and Europa League but it is still a trend that the club will want to redress.
Much of Stoke's success was based on making the Britannia stadium as inhospitable a ground as there is in the Premier League and their record against the top sides there is incredible. Last season saw them beat Liverpool and Tottenham at home whilst Arsenal, Manchester City, Manchester United and Chelsea could only manage draws. The club would like to turn some of the 8 home draws into wins and had they, for the sake of argument, won 2 more games at home last year, instead of finishing 14th with 45 points they would have finished 10th with 51. Their record of 8 home draws is only bettered by Liverpool with 9.
That said it was the 11 away defeats that really prevented Stoke from climbing further up the table and their away form was one of the poorest in the league. It shows how far Stoke have come in such a short space of time that finishing 14th is considered a slight under achievement and they certainly deserve to be recognised for quietly establishing themselves in the league, so much so, that hardly anyone has tipped them to be relegated.
There has been a significant turnover at the club this summer with many of the clubs older players who had served the club well, being moved out and younger players like Michael Kightly, Geoff Cameron and Jamie Ness arriving. Pulis has spoken of his plans to reinvigorate the club saying that "It's important that we introduce some young blood in strenghtening the squad."
Goals are the major concern for Stoke as they were the division's lowest scorers with a paltry 36 goals. When you consider that Peter Crouch and Jonathan Walters contributed 17 of those goals, Pulis badly needs some other players to step up. Kightly is a decent player and injuries deprived him of the chance to make a sustained impact on the league but will hope to do just that at Stoke.
The goalscoring problem cannot entirely be apportioned to the failure of the club's forwards and in fact Crouch's return of 14 goals overall is respectable given that Stoke really struggle for midfield creativity. Whilst wingers Matthew Etherington and Jermaine Pennant can usually be relied upon for a steady supply of crosses when on the pitch, the team creates little centrally.
Whilst the club's central midfielders are incredibly hard working and solid players they typically lack the ability to open teams up, partly as Stoke look to play nominally from wide. The signing of Ness from Rangers, a promising, but fairly unproven 21 year old, indicates that Pulis too is aware of this problem.
The position that Stoke are in is a precarious one. On one hand they will want to continue to develop the club's squad and style of play to be more flexible and become less reliant on their set pieces, the best in Europe, and more comfortable in possession. On the other hand the club have been very successful with their current philosophy and if they were to move too quickly in changing they could find themselves dragged into a relegation battle.
It is a very similar situation to that which occurred at Bolton when Sam Allardyce left and Sammy Lee took over. Lee tried to change the philosophy of the club and Bolton promptly saw themselves dragged into the position of perennial relegation candidates.
Ultimately the club will be fine this year but it could be a difficult season. Pulis deserves more credit than he and the club gets, but his attempts to move the club in a more modern direction will have to be carefully managed to avoid undoing all the good work he and Stoke have done in recent years.
Predicted Finish: 16th.
Key Man: Peter Crouch. With 14 goals last term, Stoke will be looking for the former England international to deliver again. Whilst his England careers is probably finished, Crouch will still believe he can earn a recall now that Roy Hodgson has taken the reigns. A repeat of his wonder strike against Manchester City would do nicely as well.
Underrated: Glenn Whelan. Few players can match the Irishman for work rate and he combines this industrious approach with a solid range of passing and a decent shot from distance. Slightly hampered by the club's approach, if Pulis does want to progress the club's style of play Whelan can play a key role.
Watch out for: Jamie Ness. Signed in slightly controversial circumstances, 21 year old Ness, could end up being one of Pulis' bett signings. Comfortable with either foot, he will probably be eased into action as he has not had much experience of first team football but he could turn out to be a fixture in the Stoke midfield in seasons to come.
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