Lawrence braced for Stoke exit
The Republic of Ireland international started only 14 games in the
2009/10 season and found himself behind Dean Whitehead and Rory
Delap in the pecking order. Lawrence, 28, told the Sentinel: “I
don’t want to leave Stoke but it is becoming increasingly difficult
with other players playing in my position. “I have nothing but
respect for (manager) Tony Pulis and have never fallen out with him
in three and a half years at the club. “But, purely for footballing
reasons, it is time to move on. That is best for both parties. “The
team has done well whether I have played or not, so I am not going
to moan and say I should be playing. But I am not a player who is
happy to sit on the bench and just pick my wages up. “I have agreed
with the manager that this is the right thing to do. He told me he
didn’t want me to go but he understood where I was coming from.”
Lawrence joined Stoke for £500,000 from Sunderland in January
2007 and played a major role in their promotion to the Premier
League the following summer. He signed a new four-year deal at the
Britannia Stadium last summer but things have not worked out how he
had hoped. Lawrence has been linked with a move to Wolves, which
would see him reunited with Mick McCarthy, his former boss at
Sunderland. He continued: “I am aware of interest from clubs and
hope I can stay in the Premier League but I won’t be doing anything
without Stoke knowing.”