Stoke City boss Tony Pulis stands by their signing of Michael Owen.

And he hasn't ruled out the possibility of Owen having one last hurrah in Stoke's colours before hanging up his boots at the end of the season.

Pulis told The Sentinel: "It was a gamble, but I think he was worth the gamble.

"On the question of his pay, his basic pay is low, in fact lower than most of the younger players in the group here.

"The fact he picked up injuries early on have affected his chances with us.

"But with eight games to go, I'm hoping he can be involved, as an impact player from the bench, and scoring goals."