Major spending will not become habit Peter Coates warns Stoke fans

Pulis has received huge backing from his chairman (GETTY IMAGES)

Stoke chairman Peter Coates is not keen on splashing out £20million in every transfer window but accepts occasionally it is necessary for the club to progress.

The Potters signed Tottenham duo Peter Crouch and Wilson Palacios and Birmingham's Cameron Jerome in a last-minute spending spree on deadline day.

However, Coates warned fans not to expect similar splurges in the future as the club continues to try to balance development with maintaining a sound financial footing.

"The football club cannot do these things alone. It relies on us to put money in to make it happen," said the chairman, whose family own an on-line gambling company.

"I'm not sure I want to see it (spending £20million in one go) often either.

"It isn't our wish that this should continue. We want to progress the club, of course, but we also want it to play at the highest level and be self-sufficient at the same time.

"That is the long-term objective and we are working towards that.

"But it is a balancing act all of the time because you get extra income from doing better as a club."

The money spent on deadline day can be offset slightly against the free transfers of Jonathan Woodgate and Matthew Upson earlier in the summer, meaning manager Tony Pulis effectively signed five players for a total of £20million.

Pulis knew he needed to vary and deepen his squad with a Europa League campaign to contest this season alongside his quest to better finishes of 13th, 11th and 12th since their return to the top flight.

Coates said it was a measure of how far the club had progressed that they could attract the calibre of player they had.

"It is quite clear we can get good players into Stoke," he told The Sentinel.

"It is a measure of how far we have come and a measure of the club's status in the game.

"But football is not an exact science, it's an unpredictable business.

"When you have made such a huge investment you just hope it's going to work for you.

"There are never any guarantees, but we do think we have made some good signings."