Stoke City defender Ryan Shawcross will seek specialist help as he looks to recover from a back injury.

Shawcross has been troubled by a back problem since picking up an injury during the second half of last season and manager Mark Hughes has gone on to reveal that the defender will now be seeking specialist advice over the issue.

"As we all know, Ryan has got an issue with his back which he is going to get checked out this week," the Potters boss said to Stoke City Player.

"Obviously it isn't resolving itself so he will see a specialist early this week and hopefully we can gain more information following that meeting.

"He hasn't had too much game time and he has been struggling in training also, so we need to get it sorted once and for all."