Stoke City’s Bosun Lawal is stepping up his recovery and could feature against Cardiff City this weekend, as detailed in a report by StokeOnTrentLive.
Stoke City swooped to land the player last summer. However, he has been sidelined since his move to SCFC due to a stress fracture to his lower back.
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SCFC – Stoke City’s Stadium
Image courtesy of: ED SYKES/REUTERS.
Lawal, 21, has endured a frustrating start to life at the Bet365 Stadium. He has made only three appearances so far this season, all of which have come in the Championship.
In this latest update regarding his situation by StokeOnTrentLive, he isn’t too far off playing again. He may well play against fellow second tier side Cardiff City in the FA Cup fourth round on Saturday.
The Potters have a break from league action as they prepare to face the Bluebirds. Mark Robins’ side are sat in 18th place in the table and are five points above the drop zone following their 2-1 away win at Hull City last time out.
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Stoke City injury boost regarding Bosun Lawal
Stoke City landed Lawal in August and he penned a long-term deal running until 2028.
He still has plenty of time to make an impact with the Potters and has a lot of potential.
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Image courtesy of: REUTERS.
The Republic of Ireland youth international can play in either midfield or defence.
After joining his current club, he told their website: “The Club is massive, it didn’t need selling to me, but when I spoke to Glenn Whelan and Charlie Adam, who coached me for Ireland and Fleetwood, what they said about Stoke City really excites me for my journey here.
“The gaffer and Jon (Walters) are full of ambition and that really attracted me, they want to take the Club back to the highest level.”
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Lawal played in Ireland for St. Kevin’s Boys and Bohemians before Watford signed him in 2019.
He spent two years with the Hornets before Celtic lured him up to Scotland.
The prospect went on to play five times for the Hoops’ first-team, chipping in with two goals, and was mainly a key player for their B team during his days in Glasgow.
What now for Stoke City?
Stoke City’s FA Cup match against Cardiff City may not be the most glamorous tie but it is a chance for them to progress in the competition.
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It also gives them the opportunity to give the likes of Lawal some much needed minutes.
Mark Robins notched his first league win in charge of Stoke City last weekend against Hull City, and it was one formational tweak that helped his side on the way to victory, so he must continue to play that way going forward as the Potters battle against relegation this season.
Stoke have endured a turbulent campaign up to this point, with Robins the third different boss to take the helm at the bet365 Stadium following Steven Schumacher and Narcis Pelach’s respective sackings.
Spanish head-coach Pelach oversaw a nine-game winless run that meant he was relieved of his duties in December, and while interim boss Ryan Shawcross led his side to one win and one draw in his short time in charge, Robins was well aware of the task at hand when he took the job last month.
The Potters have not had an instant upturn in fortunes under his guidance. They have been much more solid in defence and have had more control over games, but their attacking play has suffered as a result, and up until Saturday’s game at the MKM Stadium, they had scored just two goals in Robins’ first four league games as boss.
The 55-year-old, however, had a trick up his sleeve that he had not been able to deploy until against Hull, as Ipswich Town loanee Ali Al-Hamadi came into the side for his debut, and Robins was able to play two competent strikers alongside each other for the first time.
Stoke ended up walking away with a 2-1 win, thanks in part to Al-Hamadi’s opener and his link-up with Nathan Lowe, and so the Potters boss has to stick with that successful gameplan in the weeks to come as they seek more wins to move away from the bottom three.
Stoke City’s two-pronged attack caused Hull City problems all afternoon
Ali Al-Hamadi Ipswich Town
Stoke’s attack has been shaken up over the last month of the January transfer window, with Tom Cannon heading back to Leicester City to be sold on, young striker Lowe being recalled by the Potters from his impressive loan with Walsall, Al-Hamadi coming in until the end of the season from Ipswich, and Niall Ennis also leaving for Blackpool.
As a result of the uncertainty around who would be playing where after the window had closed, and a lack of options as the club waited for deals to happen, Robins had been unable to settle on a main, lone striker in his first few games, with Cannon starting against Plymouth Argyle and Sunderland, Lowe starting against West Brom and Oxford United, and Ennis surprisingly handed a starting berth away to Portsmouth.
That meant that a trip to East Yorkshire was not only a huge chance to grab three points from a relegation rival, but also to debut a new-look Potters front-line, with Al-Hamadi and Lowe both set-up to play alongside each other in a front two, and Stoke in a 4-4-2 formation that, at times, became a 3-4-1-2 when out-of-possession.
Stoke got off to a poor start, as new Tigers signing Eliot Matazo scored the opener inside six minutes, but after a period of sustained pressure from the hosts, Al-Hamadi took his first real chance with aplomb as he popped up at the back post to fire home and level the game just before half-time.
