Stoke City have handed trials to Aston Villa defender Patrick Zito.

The 18-year-old was named in Stoke's U23 matchday squad for the visit to Craven Cottage to take on Fulham in the Premier League, says the Express & Star.

Kevin Russell's Stoke side were beaten 2-1 on the night despite Adam Porter's second half beauty levelling the scores before the hour mark.

Zito, who was named in Mark Delaney's Villa squad to face Burton Albion in the Papa John's Trophy on Tuesday night, was a surprise inclusion for Stoke's U23s considering he'd played a solid role in Villa's Premier League 2 campaign so far this term.

When Villa announced their retained and released list before the start of the new season, nine youngsters committed their futures to the club for another season and nine others parted ways.

Zito was the only player to be offered a short-term contract to prove himself ahead of a new deal.