Mark O'Connor says signing a striker is the top priority for Stoke this summer

Stoke City are happy to scour the foreign market for new signings, says first team coach Mark O'Connor.

Of the 20 players the Potters have signed since promotion to the Premier League in May 2008, only one has been from a club outside England.

O'Connor told BBC Radio Stoke: "If a player is British-based, he's a good player and we can get him, we will.

"If he's a foreign lad and we can afford it, we'll go that route as well. It's just about improving the squad."

O'Connor continued: "It doesn't matter which nationality he is. The more you're in the Premier League, you can spread your wings a little bit further.

"You think one or two players will come to you that perhaps wouldn't have done so before, and that's exciting for the club."

Uruguay international midfielder Diego Arismendi, from Club Nacional, is the only player that Stoke have signed from abroad in the past two seasons, while only two Arismendi and Seyi Olofinjana, had no Premier League experience before moving to the Britannia Stadium.

As they prepare for their third consecutive campaign in the top-flight, O'Connor believes Stoke are more capable of attracting the players they need than when they were first promoted.

"There will be a certain budget and we know as a football club that we have to work within that, which isn't a problem," he added.

"Our defensive record was very good last year, but we need to score more goals in all areas of the pitch.

"Everybody's looking for that player that can get you those 15 or 20 goals and they're very difficult to come by, but we're much more of an attractive proposition now, having been in the Premier League for two years and doing so well."

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