Wilson Palacios joins Stoke from Tottenham

Stoke tonight completed the signing of Wilson Palacios from Tottenham with barely an hour of the transfer window remaining.

And the Potters were still hopeful of adding the midfielder's former Spurs team-mate Peter Crouch before the 11pm deadline.

Palacios, 27, penned a four-year contract at the Britannia Stadium after being deemed surplus to requirements by Tottenham.

Crouch arrived at Stoke's training ground earlier this evening as the club attempted to push through a late deal for the England striker.

Potters manager Tony Pulis had been chasing both Crouch and Palacios in a double deal for a couple of weeks.

The latter's transfer appeared to have gone smoothly after he underwent a medical over the weekend, although it was suggested today the move might have stalled had Crouch not agreed to travel up to Stoke.

The forward now seems to have decided they offer his best chance of regular first-team football and was driven into the Potters' Clayton Wood facility at around 8pm.

Stoke boss Tony Pulis said: "This is a fantastic deal for the club because Wilson has proved himself to be a top class performer at the highest level.

"He has a considerable amount of international experience and played a prominent part in getting Tottenham into the Champions League only two years ago.

"He has great energy and the qualities to become a driving force in the middle of the park; the type of player our fans will love. We have been looking to strengthen our options in midfield and I am delighted to have him on board."