Stoke City manager Paul Lambert says he understands the "addiction" to management that drove Mark Hughes to take up the vacant post at Southampton.

Lambert succeeded Hughes after he was ousted by the Potters following an embarrassing FA Cup loss to Coventry.

The Scotsman, who spent eight months unemployed after being let go by Wolves at the end of last season, has expressed empathy for his predecessor.

"I understand the addiction of it," says Lambert before Stoke's important clash with Everton on Saturday.

"Mark played there, so he'll know the club pretty well. There's the adrenalin, and the feeling of nothing to lose, that will have forced him back into it. If you're a manager, you want to get back into it."