Stoke are set to flex their financial muscle once more by signing a former Pompey player

Pompey rivals Stoke City are set to take their summer transfer spending above the £30m mark with the signing of a former Fratton favourite.

Reports on Tuesday claim the Potters, who finished level on points with the Blues last season, are on the brink of signing George Hirst from Ipswich in a deal that would rise to £10m.

And that’s not the only piece of business Mark Robins is expected to conduct with the Tractor Boys. Right-back Ben Johnson is also poised to move to the Bet365 Stadium, although his anticipated move is expected to be a loan arrangement.

With Stoke already splashing the cash on Ethan Galbraith (£10m), Milan Smit (£5m), Djibril Soumare (£3.8m), Svante Ingelsson £1m) and Josh Griffiths (£600,000), their latest moves into the transfer market demonstrate their determination to return to the Premier League for the first time since 2018.

It also highlights the difficulties Pompey have when it comes to competing with other Championship clubs financially, especially when that club finished just above the Blues on goal difference only last season after a brush with relegation.

John Mousinho’s side also beat Stoke on the penultimate weekend of the season 3-1 at the Bet365 Stadium, a result that helped the Fratton Park outfit finish eight points clear of the relegation zone in 18th position.

In a bid to avoid a third consecutive relegation battle, the Blues have upped their levels of spending during the current transfer window.

Multi-million-pound fees have been paid for Marko Milovanovic, Rocco Shein and Abu Kamara, while undisclosed terms were also agreed for Daniel Bielica, Luke Brooke-Smith and Eoin Kenny.

A free-transfer move for Odin Bailey has been accompanied by loan moves for Ryan Kavuma-McQueen and Benjamin Arthur, taking the number of new recruits at PO4 to nine.

Three more new arrivals are expected to complete Pompey’s summer reshuffle.

However, Pompey’s final outlay at the end of the transfer window will be dwarfed by Stoke, whose £10m acquisition of Hirst shows they’re currently operating at a different level than the Blues.

Money, however, doesn’t guarantee success.

Indeed, the Potters lost their first game of the Championship season at home to Swansea 2-1, meaning they’ve now been beaten in each of their past five league matches.

Hirst, who scored 30 goals in 125 appearances for Ipswich, netted 15 times for Pompey during their 2021-22 season while on loan from Leicester.

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