After flirting with relegation from the Championship to League One last season, Stoke City have made a statement of intent to improve on that with their summer transfer window business.

So far, manager Mark Robins has added some stellar recruits, after Stoke signed Sorba Thomas from Huddersfield Town, before adding Divin Mubama on loan from Manchester City as well as Robert Bozenik, Aaron Cresswell and Maksym Talovierov.

However, those signings have been marred by Wouter Burger’s move to Hoffenheim and Sol Sidibe leaving Stoke for PSV Eindhoven ahead of next season.

The negative tinge on the Potters’ summer window would be eradicated if the Potters re-signed Steven Nzonzi, who has been back in training with his former side, and now Robins has lifted the lid on the potential for the Frenchman’s Stoke swansong.

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Mark Robins comments on potential of Steven Nzonzi to Stoke City

Nzonzi linked up with Stoke again last week, a decade after he departed the Potters for Spanish giants Sevilla, to watch Stoke’s 2-1 pre-season friendly win over Crewe Alexandra alongside Jon Walters.

After the Frenchman was pictured with his former teammate and current Stoke sporting director Walters, the Potters faithful were desperate to see the World Cup winner return.

36-year-old Nzonzi played 31 games in all competitions for Persian Gulf side Sepahan last season, but exited the club this summer after just one season due to concerns over conflicts in the Middle East.

With the potential for an emotional return, Robins told the Stoke Sentinel: “Steven is training with us. He’s a massive presence and a brilliant player.

“He’s been fantastic, so it’s just whether physically he can still do it because it’s been a long time away from this country, but he’s been playing regularly, so he’s still capable. I’m really excited.

“If there’s any chance we can get him anywhere near where he needs to be to perform in the Championship, because it’s different…the player’s a joke.

“He really enjoyed his time at the club previously. He obviously went on to progress his career.

“He wanted to come back and train and try and help us to achieve, if not the ultimate, then some of the landmarks, some of the signposts along the way.

“He’s a great lad. It’s really interesting and I’m hoping we can help each other.”

If Nzonzi does sign on the dotted line at Stoke for the second time in his 18-year professional career, it will be alongside a drastically different squad, but his impact could be just as crucial.

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Steven Nzonzi would be playing for a very different Stoke City side

As Robins explained, Nzonzi left Stoke for Sevilla to “progress his career”, and the Frenchman certainly did after rubbing shoulders with the likes of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo in La Liga.

Following stints with Roma, Galatasaray, and Rennes before a spell in the Middle East, Nzonzi has proven he still has the fitness to operate at a high level.

However, the Potters team Nzonzi left in 2015, will be very different from the side he could line up for in the 2025/26 Championship campaign.

Nzonzi’s final game for the Potters came with the last outing in the 2014/15 Premier League season, in which Stoke infamously beat Liverpool 6-1 in Steven Gerrard’s departing game for the Reds.

Within the clash, Nzonzi scored a stunning long-range effort and bossed the midfield battle with ease, and the Potters faithful will be hoping the Frenchman can have a similar impact next season if he signs as a Stoke player for the second time.