Stoke City must resist any Ipswich Town transfer opportunity this summer.

Stoke City may be tempted to re-sign Ipswich Town striker Ali Al-Hamadi this summer following his recent loan spell with the club, but they should avoid bringing him back to ST4 as they aim to climb the Championship table under Mark Robins next season. Al-Hamadi joined the Potters on loan from Premier League strugglers late in the winter window, hoping to rekindle his scoring touch at the bet365 Stadium after a difficult half-season tenure in the top level with few opportunities to make an impact in Kieran McKenna’s side. He scored in his Stoke debut in a victory over fellow bottom-half side Hull City. but only scored once more in red and white as he ended the campaign behind Sam Gallagher in the forward pecking order while Robins’ side looked to pull away from the relegation zone.

The Potters stayed up after a close call at the conclusion of the season, and while Al-Hamadi developed a great bond with fans both at games and on social media, he did not perform well enough to warrant another tenure with the club. Stoke may be tempted to re-sign the Iraqi international as they seek to construct a stable group of players who want to stay at the club, but they should not do so and instead look elsewhere to solve their attacking difficulties.

Ali Al-Hamadi started brightly but fell off during his loan time with Stoke.

Stoke felt they had hit the jackpot when they signed Tom Cannon on loan from Leicester City last summer, and he proved to be a significant goalscorer for the club in the first half of the season, scoring 11 goals in 25 appearances despite the team’s difficult season. Their worst fears were fulfilled in the January transfer window, when he was recalled by the Foxes and sold to promotion hopes Sheffield United for a cost that Stoke couldn’t even afford. The Potters needed a new centre-forward who could score on a regular basis, and Al-Hamadi was given the opportunity to become the Robins’ main number nine after joining from Ipswich.

He got off to a good start with a goal against Hull, but then failed to score in his following six games, and his major competition, Gallagher, scored twice off the bench against Coventry City. Gallagher’s heroics may have inspired Al-Hamadi to make a bigger impression against Blackburn Rovers in the following game, and if so, it worked perfectly as he scored the winner to take the Potters four points clear of the bottom three. On a personal level, that was the best moment for the Iraqi international, however, and he began to struggle for game-time after missing Stoke’s next home game through injury,This resulted in a 3-1 victory over QPR and a surge in attack during his absence. He started just three of the club’s final seven league games, with manager Robins mostly relying on Gallagher in crucial games, and he was replaced before the hour mark in two of those three starts.

Al-Hamadi’s season did conclude on a high note, however, as he worked tirelessly to assist the Potters cross the line to safety against Derby County on the final day of the season.

Al-Hamadi enjoyed his time at Stoke – Mark Robins must not let sentiment dictate his transfer decisions

Al-Hamadi was serenaded by Stoke’s travelling fans during the Derby game, demonstrating how quickly they had taken to him, as well as the desire to sign another loan striker after Cannon’s swift January leave left many at the club expecting the worst. The 23-year-old certainly liked his time in North Staffordshire, as evidenced by his heartfelt farewell letter to fans on Instagram last week, but his effect on the pitch was simply insufficient to merit another move.

Read more on sportupdates.co.uk