The £30m goalkeeper!

Posh have borrowed a £30 million goalkeeper for the rest of the League One season.

That’s the value Stoke City have placed on Josef Bursik who moved to Posh in an emergency loan deal in time to make an accomplished debut at Swindon last weekend, according to London Road director of football Barry Fry.

Posh boss Darren Ferguson decided to chase Bursik after regular number one Christy Pym was sidelined by a side strain.

Posh were able to use the emergency loan market because neither of the club’s back-up goalkeepers Dan Gyollai and Will Blackmore had made five Football League appearances.

Fry was eventually able to tie up the Bursik transfer after opening negotiations with Stoke owner Peter Coates.

“They value Josef at £30 million,” Fry claimed. “He was excellent at Doncaster on loan earlier this season and then played 15 Championship matches for Stoke who were so impressed they gave him a new contract on good wages.”

Ferguson defended his decision to go for Bursik rather than place trust in the race for automatic promotion in Gyollai’s hands.

Gyollai (24) signed for Posh on a free transfer from Wigan last summer, but has so far been restricted to four EFL Trophy matches.

Teenager Blackmore signed his first professional contract this season after graduating from the Posh Academy.

Ferguson said: “As always I made a decision based on what’s best for the team.

“If Christy had just been missing for one or two games I’d have gone with Dan, but the magnitude of what’s to come meant I wanted more experience for the last seven games. It’s no slight on Dan or Will.

“It’s the business end of the season. It would have been a lot to ask of either Dan or Will to throw them straight in. I have spoken to Dan and he understands the situation.

“And although Josef had little to do at Swindon (Posh won 3-0) you can tell he’s an accomplished goalkeepr.

“He had one save to make, but he was very confident. He picked things out of the air and he has a hell of a kick on him.

“The experience he had in the Championship when he kept seven clean sheets in 15 matches in a division where the ball is pumped into the penalty area for fun will have done him good.

“Mark Robson (Ferguson’s assistant) knew him from England youth matches and highly recommended him.”

Bursik has represented England at every level from under 17s to under 21s.

He kept four Championship clean sheets in a row for Stoke and seven in his 15 appearances this season. He also played on loan at Accrington last season.

“I’m here as I want to be part of something special,” Bursik said.

“The position in the league table was a big part of me wanting to come here.

“This season has surpassed my own expectations and the chance to get some more games was too good to turn down.

“I don’t want to stand out though. I just want to do my job and help the team win some games.”

Josef Bursik during his debut for Posh at Swindon.