Mark Hughes signed Phil Bardsley for Stoke City earlier in July as the 29 year old Scottish defender was a free agent after having reached the end of his contract with his former club Sunderland.
Along with Bardsley, the manager of Stoke City Mark Hughes has fortified his squad by adding into the team Mame Biram Diouf, Steve Sidwell and Bojan Krkic. 1 player for every spot of the team will be arriving to the Britannia Stadium with expectations of not only continuing to compete against the best teams in England in the Premier League but also claim a higher spot.
Mark Hughes finished the previous season in a positive fashion as he guided Stoke City to important triumphs against Newcastle United, Fulham and a narrow victory against West Bromwich Albion on the very last match of the campaign as Stoke City went on securing the 9th spot which was their best finish ever in over 35 years.
With the arrivals of these new players into the team they can aim for even higher spots. Mark Hughes spoke about Phil Bardsley and what it means for the club having him joining the team.
“Phil has been a solid right-back at Premier League level for a long time. He’s a player I’ve been aware of for a while and there’s going to be good competition for places. He will work hard and try to put pressure on people I’m sure. I know he’s very motivated to come to the club and get into the team. That’s good from our point of view and good competition for everyone in the group.”
Stoke City is currently going through a pre-season schedule with matches against German clubs such as: Borussia Mönchengladbach and Schalke 04. These friendly games are the ideal scenario for the new arrivals of Stoke City to get accustomed to their new club.