Stoke City linked with late swoop for West Brom defender

Stoke City are still busy behind the scenes in the countdown to transfer deadline day

Stoke City have been linked with an 11th hour move for Newcastle United right-back Harrison Ashby.

Stoke, Blackburn Rovers and Queens Park Rangers have the 22-year-old defender on their shopping list for a loan move ahead of the transfer deadline on Friday, according to The Sun’s Alan Nixon.

Ashby came through the ranks at West Ham United but left for Newcastle in a £3 million deal in January 2023 and spent the first half of last season with Swansea City, before injury forced him to return north.

The Scotland under-21s international is behind Tino Livramento and Kieran Trippier in the pecking order under Eddie Howe and is in need of game time at this stage in his career.

Steven Schumacher has Junior Tchamadeu as his number one right-back, with Lynden Gooch as cover, having seen Ki-Jana Hoever return to parent club Wolves after 18 months on loan with Stoke. Jaden Dixon, aged 17, has also been used as right-back this month. Hoever has since moved on to Auxerre on loan for this season

Stoke have brought in eight players so far this summer, with the two most recent Ash Phillips and Andrew Moran making their full debuts in last night’s 5-0 demolition of Middlesbrough in the Carabao Cup.