Shawcross out for two months

Stoke captain Ryan Shawcross is to undergo back surgery and will be out for at least two months, the club have announced.

The central defender is to have the operation next week having suffered a recurrence of the back problem that troubled him last season.

A club statement said: “The club had hoped surgery would not be necessary and that the summer break would provide a solution. “That initially appeared to be the case, but the harder Shawcross pushed himself in pre-season the more discomfort he found himself in, leaving no alternative but for him to undergo the operation.”