Stoke City chairman Peter Coates says spending £20 million on transfer deadline day is well within their budget.

He admits he never thought he would see the day when the club would spend so much in one go, quipping: "And I'm not sure I want to see it often either."

Coates, whose family own the multi-million pound on-line gambling giant bet365, added: "The football club cannot do these things alone. It relies on us to put money in to make it happen.

"It isn't our wish that this should continue. We want to progress the club, of course, but we also want it to play at the highest level and be self-sufficient at the same time.

"That is the long-term objective and we are working towards that. But it is a balancing act all of the time because you get extra income from doing better as a club."