Stoke City have announced the signing of left-back Morgan Fox after the Welshman rejected a new contract at Sheffield Wednesday.
Stoke City Sign Morgan Fox
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The 26-year-old has become the Potters’ first signing of the summer. Speaking to the club website, manager Michael O’Neil said: “Morgan is a player who knows the Championship really well and at the age of 26 he’s still hungry to improve and play at a higher level.
“Left-back is an area we have been looking to strengthen and Morgan, with his defensive acumen, athleticism and delivery from set-plays will be a great asset for us.”
Fox made 27 Championship appearances for the Owls last season. His contract expired at the end of June, and despite being offered a deal beyond that, he chose to leave the club before the season finished.
💪 Yes, he can play left-back.#SCFC 🔴⚪️ pic.twitter.com/pEeYsLAWBj
— Stoke City FC (@stokecity) August 7, 2020
Speaking after being officially unveiled as a Potter, Fox said: “It’s just brilliant to be here, a new beginning for me.
“After meeting the gaffer, it seemed like the right place for me. It’s a good project that he’s starting here.
“You can see the amount of quality that’s already in the group and hopefully I can join that and get myself in with them.”
I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone at Sheffield Wednesday who has supported me over the past 3 and half years, especially the fans. I wish the best of luck to the staff and players for the future. @swfc 🦉🔵 pic.twitter.com/2eq8TrvOfF
— Morgan Fox (@MA_Fox) August 7, 2020
Really excited to be here at Stoke City. Looking forward to playing in front of the incredible fans, hopefully in the not too distant future. Promise to give my all for the shirt and can’t wait to get started. @stokecity 🔴⚪️ pic.twitter.com/EdTcEO32OG
— Morgan Fox (@MA_Fox) August 7, 2020
What Will Morgan Fox Bring to Stoke City?
Sheffield Wednesday signed Fox from Charlton Athletic in January 2017, and it’s fair to say he had a very mixed spell as a Wednesday player. In his first few months at Hillsborough, he had to grapple with Daniel Pudil for that left-back berth. Therefore, he was in and out of the team as Wednesday secured a fourth-placed finish.
But after missing out on promotion via the play-offs, the club’s performances declined, and so did Fox’s. In his first full season as an Owl, the left-back failed to impress in the midst of a crippling injury crisis. The 2018-19 campaign was a season of two halves. His performances in the first half of the season were very poor, and he was part of a defence that had conceded the most goals in the CHampionship when Jos Luhukay was sacked in December 2018.
However, the appointment of Steve Bruce the following month transformed his form. Fox grew into a reliable, solid full-back for an Owls side who cleaned up their defensive act to finish 12th. Bruce departed last summer, but that didn’t hinder Fox. He continued to put in solid displays consistently throughout the season, even when his teammates let their performance levels plummet in the opening few months of 2020.
Many Wednesday fans would say Fox had become their most improved player, so they’re naturally disappointed to see him leave. That fact alone speaks volumes about the Welshman’s attitude. Before an early season game against Luton Town back in August, a small minority of the Owls crowd booed him before he’d kicked a ball. But instead of letting that get the better of him, Fox knuckled down and proved the doubters wrong.
The 26-year-old is an old-fashioned, defend first left-back. He lacks pace, but his positional sense and reading of the game help to make up for that. You’ll rarely see Fox bombing forward on the overlap, but his ability to deliver crosses from deep areas make him a good option to support attacks.
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