Stoke City have snapped up Finland youth striker Niklas Jokelainen.

The Sentinel says Jokelainen, 16, who has previously spent time training at Chelsea and Fulham, arrives on a six-month deal hoping to win a permanent place in Stoke's academy.

The left-footed forward is looking forward to the chance to proving his potential in English football.

He said in an interview for boyhood club AC Oulu's website: "Of course a permanent transfer would be a dream come true but first I have a tough six months to show my skills.

"The competition is extremely fierce here but they don't call you for fun."

Oulu manager Timo Kalermo said: "Niklas has done a tremendous job in order to get to the Premier League and open doors.

"It has required thousands of hours training with the ball with the team and, above all, in his own time.

"He has six months to convince Stoke but it's not worth thinking too much about that. If he succeeds he'll stay there and at that point the money will move to some extent."