Ibrahim Afellay: Stoke City sign ex-Barcelona winger
Last updated on .From the section Football
Netherlands winger Ibrahim Afellay has signed for Stoke City - the fourth former Barcelona player to join the club.
The 29-year-old joins the Potters on a free transfer after ending his four-and-a-half-year stay at the Nou Camp.
He made just nine starts for the Catalans, spending last season on loan at Greek side Olympiakos following a previous temporary stay at Schalke.
The 50-times capped Afellay has become Stoke's eighth summer signing.
Stoke boss Mark Hughes has also confirmed that the club remain interested in Ukrainian winger Andriy Yarmalenko, for whom they are reported to have made a £13m bid, having sold Steven N'Zonzi and Asmir Begovic for a combined £15m.
| Stoke City signings for 2015-16 | |
|---|---|
| Moha El Ouriachi (Barcelona) | Joselu (Hannover 96) |
| Shay Given (Aston Villa) | Philipp Wollscheid (B Leverkusen) |
| Jakob Haugaard (FC Midtjylland) | Marco van Ginkel (Chelsea - loan) |
| Glen Johnson (Liverpool) | Ibrahim Afellay (Barcelona) |
"We've expressed an interest, but we're not the only club," Hughes told BBC Radio Stoke. "I'm not sure how it's progressing. We're in the market for good players but we also understand that there are other clubs who covet players at that level.
"We are encouraged by the conversations we're having but we also know we have just got to be patient. If it can be done, then the club will try to make it happen."
Barcelona, for whom Potters manager Mark Hughes played in the 1980s, already had two ex-players, Bojan Krkic and Marc Muniesa, at Stoke.
And, having already signed ex-Barca winger Moha El Ouriachi earlier this summer, Afellay's arrival brings that number up to four.
Stoke secured ninth place for the second successive season in 2014-15, recording their best Premier League points total.
Find all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page.