STOKE CLOSING IN ON FLORES AS NEW BOSS
STOKE are in advanced talks to land Quique Sanchez Flores as manager on a five-year deal. Flores must first negotiate terms for leaving Espanyol so Eddie Niedzwiecki, Stoke’s first-team coach, is likely to act as caretaker boss for Monday’s trip to Manchester United. Stoke hope to appoint Spaniard Flores to replace Mark Hughes this weekend. Vice-chairman John Coates and chief executive Tony Scholes flew to Barcelona for initial talks on Wednesday and the early signs have been encouraging. It is understood that Flores always preferred to watch from the stand at Old Trafford and, as discussions continue, that looks likely to happen. Flores, in talks yesterday with Espanyol’s general sports director Oscar Perarnau and sports director Jordi Lardin, feels that it would disrupt Stoke’s preparations if he were to pick the side to face United. Niedzwiecki, supported by Under 18s manager Kevin Russell, will be in the dugout on Monday. Stoke see Flores, 52, as a progressive appointment and hope that after the United clash a sequence of matches against Huddersfield, Watford, Bournemouth and Brighton — with three at home — could offer a platform for survival. Flores, formerly Atletico Madrid manager, was sacked by Watford in 2016 despite taking the promoted side to 13th in the Premier League and the FA Cup semi-finals. He led Espanyol to eighth place last season and they now sit 14th in La Liga. Speaking on Thursday after Espanyol’s win over Levante in the Spanish Cup, Flores was reluctant to discuss Stoke. ‘I’m not going to talk about me on such an important day for Espanyol,’ he said. ‘I want to enjoy these moments.’ Stoke sacked Hughes last Saturday after a 2-1 FA Cup defeat at League Two Coventry and a run of seven losses in 10 Premier League games.