Stoke City F.C. captain Ryan Shawcross has revealed he hopes the club will be able to keep in-form goalkeeper Jack Butland for the foreseeable future.
Butland, who joined Stoke from Birmingham City for an initial fee of £3. 3 million in January 2013, has become the Potters’ No. goalkeeper following the sale of Asmir Begović to Chelsea this summer.
The England international, 22, has impressed in between the sticks for Mark Hughes’ side this season despite having kept just one clean sheet in eight league fixtures, with his 10-save showing against Arsenal certainly catching the eye.
“It’s good for Jack and it’s good for the club to have him involved with England, but he’s had an excellent start to the season,” Shawcross told The Sentinel.
“We seem to have a problem that if our keepers play so well they move on so we will have to be careful he doesn’t have too many saves to make.
“Jack’s signed a long contract and he’s a top keeper. Hopefully we can keep him for as long as we can.”
Lavery sign Portsmouth on loan
Portsmouth F.C. have completed the signing of Sheffield Wednesday striker Caolan Lavery on a three-month loan deal.
Lavery, 22, has spent parts of each of the past three seasons on loan at Soutend United, Plymouth Argyle, and Chesterfield.
The 22-year-old played under Portsmouth boss Paul Cook at Chesterfield last season, where he bagged three goals in eight appearances.
“I had offers from other places a lot closer to Sheffield and in higher divisions, but I know Paul and Leam (Richardson) very well,” Lavery told the club’s official website.
“Their ambition is fantastic, as is the way they like football to be played and when you look at the size of this club, I couldn’t really say no.
“I’d like to be part of the success that I’m sure Pompey will have this season and I’m looking forward to getting started.
“At the age I’m at now, I need to be playing games on a regular basis and scoring goals.”
Portsmouth are priced at 3/1 to win the Sky Bet League Two title this season.
In other news, Borussia Dortmund chief executive Hans-Joachim Watzke does not expect newly-appointed Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp to raid his former club when the transfer window re-opens in January.
“I am 100 percent certain that such a thing would never happen behind our backs,” Klopp told Bild.
“And Jurgen would also never do anything to harm BVB. We’re too close to each other and have experienced too much together for that to happen.”
Since Klopp’s appointment, Liverpool have been linked with several BVB stars, including the likes of Ilkay Gundogan, Marco Reus, Mats Hummels, and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
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