Potters review loan players

Stoke City manager, Johan Boskamp has been discussing the options for Stoke’s current long term loan players – Paul Gallagher and Junior.

Paul Gallagher has been instrumental in Stoke’s fortune this season and is currently the Potters’ top scorer with eleven goals. But it is well known that the Blackburn player is also well paid by the Lancashire club and Stoke could not afford to match his current salary if he was to make the move to the Potteries permanent in the summer.
Boskamp told the official site that he believes that another season on loan at Stoke will do wonders for the 21 year old striker with four other strikers already competing for places at the Premiership club: ‘I know he likes it here, so maybe they want to help us out again next season and he can grow with us until he is ready to play in the Premiership for Blackburn.’

The manager also believes that Junior has settled in well to life in English football: ‘I hope that Junior stays. Now he has got used to the English game he can be a good player for us.
‘I heard Anderlecht can take up an option to keep him for another year, but Junior says he can decide so we will sit down and see what he wants to do.’

No mention was made of Josip Skoko, who is on a short term loan from Wigan. The Austrialian international is looking forward to the World Cup and does not believe his future at Wigan will be sorted before the competition starts in June but seems resigned to fighting for a place in the Wigan starting line-up next season.