Stoke suffer Indi blow

Stoke’s hopes of signing Bruno Martins Indi on a permanent deal have hit the rocks.

According to a report on talkSPORT the defender seems certain to return to Porto despite being wanted by Mark Hughes.

The Dutch defender has proved his worth in more than 30 Premier League appearances with Hughes keen to build around the defender next season.

The exact nature of the problem hasn’t been made public but it seems certain that after Sunday’s match at Southampton Indi will cut his ties with Stoke.

Hughes admitted: “We are still discussing the deal and speaking to Porto. Clearly, Bruno is still their player, so we can only dictate and influence that situation up to a point and we have to be patient with it.

“It’s a little bit frustrating though, I have to say, because Bruno has been fantastic this year but there isn’t just us and Bruno to satisfy.”

Stoke had been hoping for a fairly quiet summer on the transfer front with the emphasis on bringing in a few quality additions to a squad that is well established in the Premier League.

Reducing the age profile of the squad is one priority for Hughes to look at with the 25-year-old on loan from Porto looking to help that goal.

If it proves impossible to sort out a deal with the Portuguese side to secure Indi Hughes will be forced to start afresh in his search for a new central defensive partnership for next season.