JONATHAN WALTERS HAS been confirmed as Stoke City’s sporting director on a permanent basis.

The former Republic of Ireland international, who made 271 appearances for the club between 2010 and 2017, had been carrying out the role on an interim basis since February.

Stoke chairman John Coates hailed Walters’ influence and said there was “no doubt in my mind” that he was the right person for the job after what was described as “a thorough recruitment process, interviewing a number of impressive individuals.”

Stoke are currently 18th in the Championship, just four points above the relegation zone, and the 40-year-old says he’s not looking beyond the remaining five games before putting plans in place.

“It’s hard to articulate the drive inside of me to help get this club back to where I believe it belongs,” Walters said.

“The first priority is to retain our Championship status this season. After that, it’s a case of building brick-by-brick towards a long-term ambition of being better than we’ve ever been before.

“It’s going to take time, and there will be ups-and-downs along the way, but the mission is to create and sustain a team that truly represents the Club, our fans and the city of Stoke-on-Trent.

“We will do that by instilling a culture of high standards in everything we do and being true to the local DNA of dedication, relentless hard work, having each other’s backs and never giving in.

“Those values and ambitions must be aligned right across the Club, including the board, the players, training ground and stadium staff, and our amazing fans.

“We will recruit and develop people who live and breathe our behaviours and standards, and I will constantly hold myself and others around me to account in our relentless pursuit of the successful future our supporters so richly deserve.”