Stoke complete Joselu signing

Stoke City have completed the signing of Joselu from Hannover for €8million - within an hour of announcing a deal for the striker had been agreed.

The former Spain Under-21 international, previously on the books of Real Madrid, follows Mame Biram Diouf in moving from Hannover to the Britannia Stadium.

Diouf scored 11 Premier League goals in the 2014-15 campaign following his arrival from the HDI Arena on a free transfer last June.

Stoke chief executive Tony Scholes said: "Joselu was one of our key summer targets and so I am delighted that we have been able to complete this deal.

"Despite offers from leading European clubs Joselu has decided to join Stoke City to fulfil his ambitions."

Manager Mark Hughes added: "Joselu has an excellent pedigree and is a player we have been tracking for some time.

"He has skills and attributes that are different to what we already have within the squad but will complement the attacking players we already have at our disposal."

For his own part, Joselu expressed delight at securing a switch to the Premier League.

"I’m so happy to have joined Stoke City; it's a dream for me to join a club like this," he said.

"To play in the Premier League has always been an ambition of mine. It is a fantastic league with great clubs, of which Stoke City is certainly one.

"I know there were other teams in Europe who wanted to sign me but once I had spoken to the people at Stoke I knew I wanted to come here and be a part of this club."

The 25-year-old, who spent a solitary season at Hannover following previous spells with Hoffenheim and Eintracht Frankfurt, becomes the fourth player to join Stoke from the Bundesliga under Hughes' management - after Diouf, Marko Arnautovic and Philipp Wollscheid.