Eidur Gudjohnsen believes he has joined an ambitious club on the up after securing a move to Stoke.
Loan star looking to make his mark with the Potters
Eidur Gudjohnsen believes he has joined an ambitious club on the up after securing a move to Stoke.
The Iceland forward moved to the Britannia Stadium on transfer deadline day on a season-long loan from Monaco.
The deal sees the 31-year-old return to the Premier League for a third spell, having previously turned out for Bolton, Chelsea and Tottenham in the English top flight.
He is excited to have joined Tony Pulis' Potters and is confident he can still do a job at the highest level.
"It is a new challenge, indeed a big challenge, but one I am really looking forward to," Gudjohnsen told the club's
official website.
"After speaking to the gaffer and hearing his and the club's ambitions, he really swayed my mind, and I am delighted the deal is done.
Atmosphere
"I can't wait to step on to the pitch, the fans are fantastic here and I always remember the atmosphere from when I have played here before.
"I scored here not so long ago for Tottenham, so maybe I owe the supporters something. Hopefully I can reward them with some goals."
He added: "I am an ambitious player, but this is an ambitious football club. I want to help take the club on to the next level. That is my main objective."
Pulis said: "This is a fantastic signing for the football club because Eidur is a player of outstanding international calibre who has performed at the highest level.
"There is no better example of the quality he provides than his contribution to Tottenham's win here in April. Not only did he score an excellent goal, he showed what a great footballing brain he has and his sense of awareness with a key role in their winner.
"Eidur made a significant contribution to Spurs qualifying for the Champions League and I am confident he can have a big impact upon our season."
Positive
On a busy deadline day, Stoke also snapped up Marc Wilson from Portsmouth, Jermaine Pennant from Real Zaragoza and brought Salif Diao back to the club on fresh terms.
Wilson is another who is delighted to be back in the big time, having slipped out of the Premier League with Pompey last season.
He said: "This is a great club which is on the up and so this is a positive move for me.
"I had a taste of playing in the Premier League last season; it's the best league in the world and I wanted to get back there as soon as possible."
Pulis said: "I wanted to freshen the squad up with some young players, and Marc certainly fits that criteria.
"He showed great maturity last season in what was a very difficult time for Portsmouth, so he will give us more competition for midfield places."
