Stoke City: Kids are alright at Stoke, insists home-grown Wilko
ANDY Wilkinson says Stoke's youth players shouldn't give up hope of making the first team, despite Ben Marshall's decision to leave for Leicester.
Academy graduate Marshall completed a £1m move to the Foxes on Tuesday after turning down City's offer of a three-year contract.
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Wilkinson makes no criticism of the 20-year-old winger's decision to head to Championship Leicester for regular first-team football.
But the defender, who came through the Stoke academy system himself, says homegrown youngsters can still make it at City, even though the Potters are competing in the Premier League.
The 27-year-old, pictured below, said: "They can definitely still do it here. The main thing is to be patient, go out on loan and get the experience, which is what I did and what Ryan Shotton has done as well.
"The Premier League is the best in the world, so it is never going to be easy for the manager to throw players in without much experience.
"But Ryan has done well and shown what he can do when he has come in this season."
Wilkinson, from Yarnfield, began playing regularly for Stoke when he was 23, the same age at which Shotton, who is from Fenton, earned a run in the side this season.
Before breaking into the Stoke side, Wilkinson went on loan to Telford United, Partick Thistle, Shrewsbury Town and Blackpool. Fellow defender Shotton was loaned to Altrincham, Tranmere and Barnsley.
Marshall is from Salford, but was recruited by Stoke from Crewe two-and-a-half years ago by City's former academy director Steve Holland.
A £30,000 fee was set at a tribunal, but also included a 20 per cent sell-on clause which has earned Crewe close to £150,000.
The winger had loans at Northampton, Cheltenham and Carlisle, and then attracted Leicester's attention while impressing for League One promotion-chasers Sheffield Wednesday this season.
Wilkinson says there is still plenty of young talent left at City, and pointed out 19-year-old midfielder Florent Cuvelier as one to watch.
The Belgian, who joined City 18 months ago from Portsmouth, went on loan for the first time last week when he joined Walsall.
Wilkinson added: "I really rate 'Flo'. If players like him can go out on loan and be patient then I am sure the gaffer will give them the chance, if they have the right attitude and application.
"Flo is technically very good, he has a great engine and his game seems to flow. In that respect, he has a bit of Jack Wilshere about him.
"I know a lot of the lads at Stoke think he is a very good player. Watch this space."
STOKE'S FA Cup fifth-round tie at Crawley Town will be played on Sunday, February 19. The game is a noon kick-off because it is being televised live by ESPN.
More Stoke City articles today on thisisstaffordshire.co.uk:
Stoke City: Hancock hoping to see Potters reign in Spain
Stoke City: More cup joy for Stoke as youngsters frustrate Rams again
Stoke City: Potters receive Crawley allocation
Robbie Earle: Who ever said blooding young talent was child's play?
Stoke City: Fall-out wasn't the reason for Forest move, says Higginbotham
3 Comments
by pica9
Friday, February 03 2012, 1:16PM
“i watched him play in the reserve match at stoke and he was great, stoke have cocked up again”
by stonemel
Thursday, February 02 2012, 7:18PM
“Ben Marshall is plenty old enough to perform in a side's first team. He is a good player who under Crewe's tuition was coached to play football. He realised that he was on an alien planet when it came to football at Stoke. Who an earth would have signed a contract under those conditions?
I wish him all the best for his future! When you think Crewe will get £120,000 of his transfer fee, we have wasted another excellent financial opportunity.”
by monty666
Thursday, February 02 2012, 12:58PM
“Ben Marshall is in no way a Stoke City academy graduate. He was 18 when he signed. He was never in the Stoke academy system.”