Stoke Edge Closer to Signing Augsburg Defender on Six Month Loan Deal

Stoke City look set to sign Augsburg defender Kostas Stafylidis on loan for the rest of the season, with new manager Paul Lambert looking to make use of the limited time still available in the January transfer market.

Having become the first club in Europe's top five leagues to ship 50 goals this season, Lambert knows that defensive reinforcement is more than necessary during this winter transfer window.

Having already signed right back Moritz Bauer from Rubin Kazan, the club have now switched their attention to the left side of defence, which is also short on options - Josh Tymon and Erik Pieters taking turns to fill in so far this season.

According to Bild's FC Augsburg Twitter account, left back Kostas Stafylidis is on his way to the Bet365 Stadium - having missed training on Wednesday morning in order to complete a loan move - though to be set with a fee of around €600,000.

The new boss will be eager to get new signings into the squad, and to impose his tactics onto the team; and although Lambert's appointment has come under scrutiny, the man himself can't wait to get started:

“I see it as a great opportunity,” he told the Guardian.

“I never thought I would get the chance to get back to this level. Whether I was 50th or first choice, it never really mattered to me.

"I’m honoured to be here and can’t wait to get started. Everybody knows it’s a real stable club – only two managers in 12 years.”