Portsmouth must sanction a deal to sign Preston North End striker Jayden Stockley this summer.
What's the talk?
According to London News Online, Portsmouth have joined the race to sign Preston North End centre-forward Stockley following his loan spell with Charlton. The report claims that Pompey are keen on a deal for the 27-year-old and that they are set to compete with Charlton for his signature in the coming weeks.
Stockley is said to be pursuing a move to a club in the south as he prepares to leave Lancashire, with Charlton and Portsmouth both viable options in that regard. However, the Lancashire Post reported earlier this week that Stockley's first choice for a permanent transfer this summer would be Charlton.
At-the-time Charlton boss Lee Bowyer labeled Stockley as a “nightmare for defenders” earlier this season as he impressed on loan at The Valley. He told London News Online:
“If there is any positive to take from tonight, it’s Jayden’s performance.
“Balls that went up to him. Even balls that he shouldn’t even hold onto and keep, he keeps. He’s just a constant threat. Every time there’s a ball going into the box, you’re thinking, where is he? He must be a nightmare for defenders.
“Our midfielders getting around him, when he can’t score himself he’s always looking to tee up someone else. Four or five occasions, we had shots that came from his lay-offs and their defenders got good blocks on them. I thought Jayden was very good tonight."
Could strike gold
Portsmouth could strike gold if they are able to secure a deal for Stockley this summer. The Preston man enjoyed a superb loan spell with Charlton and put himself in the shop window with a string of impressive displays under Bowyer and then Nigel Adkins in League One. Pompey have seemingly taken notice of his performances and now need to act quickly if they want to land him ahead of Charlton.
Stockley favours a switch to The Valley but he may not get to make the decision if Portsmouth are able to offer Preston a more attractive financial package than Charlton can. It will be down to Preston to decide whether or not Charlton make an acceptable offer and Portsmouth could throw their cards on the table with a bid to tempt them into selling him to Danny Cowley's side.
The attacker provided Charlton with 10 goals and assists in 22 League One appearances, whilst John Marquis scored 16 goals in 41 games for Portsmouth in the league. This suggests that they are on a similar level in terms of goalscoring, but Stockley's overall game could prove to be an upgrade on Marquis. Stockley averaged a superb WhoScored rating of 7.41 for Charlton, winning 9.8 aerial battles per game, whilst Marquis averaged an unimpressive score - in comparison - of 6.79 and he only won 2.7 aerial battles per game.
Therefore, Stockley could be an improvement on Marquis. However, Cowley could also opt to play both of them and look to go direct to hurt teams next season. Marquis and Stockley are both proven goalscorers at League One level and their firepower at the top end of the pitch could improve Portsmouth's chances of securing promotion to the Championship.
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