Stoke City Appoints Paul Lambert as New Manager
Stoke City have officially appointed former Norwich and Aston Villa boss Paul Lambert as their new manager, succeeding Mark Hughes following his dismissal earlier this month.
Lambert, who will watch from the stands as his new team face Manchester United at Old Trafford on Monday evening, has signed a two-and-a-half year contract with the Potters and will formally take the hold of the reins on Tuesday.
A Stoke statement explained, "When the club made a managerial change nine days ago we stated that we were looking to make an appointment as soon as possible, particularly given our position in the league and the over-riding priority being retaining our place in the Premier League."
Lambert, who has taken charge of Blackburn and Wolves in the Championship since his last Premier League role, was deemed as the best fit for the job.
Stoke chairman Peter Coates told the club's official website, "Paul greatly impressed us with his knowledge of our squad and had a clear plan of how he would improve our results.
"He's a man who backed himself as a player, none more so than when he turned down contract offers in Scotland to go on trial in the German Bundesliga with Borussia Dortmund, and it's obvious he adopts the same approach as a manager."
Stoke have picked up just nine Premier League points from a possible 36 since the start of November and find themselves facing the threat of serious relegation after 10 consecutive top flight seasons.
