"Has a lot of potential" - Stoke City re-uniting with 24-year-old touted ahead of transfer deadline | OneFootball

Luke McNally played 38 times for the Potters on loan from Burnley last season.

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Stoke City have been linked with a move to bring back former loanee Luke McNally throughout the summer, but a formal approach is yet to be made.

McNally, 24, made 38 appearances in the Championship for Stoke last season after joining on a temporary basis from Burnley, scoring twice from central defence.

The Irishman was a hit at the bet365 Stadium, with his solid performances earning him more further from the club, as well as Birmingham City and Bristol City, according to Football Insider.

Despite being down the pecking order at Turf Moor, there is yet to be any movement for the 24-year-old, who made his first cameo of the 2024/25 campaign against Luton Town in the Clarets 4-1 victory at Kenilworth Road.

McNally was excellent on loan at Coventry City in the second half of the 2022/23 season, helping the Sky Blues reach the Championship play-off final at Wembley, where they were beaten on penalties by Luton, and this experience could be key for Steven Schumacher's side, who are looking to improve greatly on a 17th-placed finish in the second tier last season.

Stoke City urged to bring Luke McNally back to the Potters before August 30

The Potters are currently without Michael Rose, following his injury against Crewe Alexandra in pre-season, and signing cover at centre-back could be a good way to round off a successful transfer window.

Ben Gibson and Ben Wilmot are both accomplished defenders in the Championship, but with Gibson's age and Wilmot's recent injury record, McNally could be the perfect fit to either start, or come in as a replacement if either one of the two has to miss out.

FLW's Stoke Fan Pundit, Sam Harrison, thinks that McNally's past with the Potters could be useful and has urged the club's hierarchy to make a fresh move to re-sign the ex-Oxford United man.

"McNally played for Stoke last season and was superb at Coventry, so he could be a real key player this season," Sam told Football League World.

"He played under Schumacher and towards the latter stages of the season was looking really solid at the back and I feel like the centre-back role is definitely one that Stoke need to fill, I think, out of all the positions.

"That and probably a striker are the priority positions that we can hopefully get sorted before the window closes.

"I'd say it looks more like it would be a permanent if he wants to leave, but he's already been linked with Stoke and a number of other clubs. But I think just from a realistic point of view, he's a player that has a lot of potential, and he’s still only a young lad."

Luke McNally's profile matches that of Stoke City's recent incomings

When Stoke's transfer policy is mentioned, most people think back to the Tony Pulis days of bringing in physical players, who may not have been the best technically, but they were excellent in his system.

However, this new look Potters side is filled with exciting, progressive footballers who are young and highly-rated and the additions of Bosun Lawal, Eric Bocat and Lewis Koumas are promising for Stoke's chances this season.

Sam believes that this new project at the bet365 Stadium will be successful in the years to come, and McNally will only add to that.

"The way in which Stoke are going at the minute is we're bringing in a lot of younger players and players that could not only be sold on in the future, but have a huge potential that could obviously boost their career and boost Stoke’s team," Sam added.

"It feels like Stoke are going through a different project with the likes of Burger, Jun-ho and other young players. McNally could be one of them as well.