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Stoke City have announced the loan signing of Augsburg left-back Konstantinos Stafylidis, as the newly appointed head coach and former Borussia Dortmund player Paul Lambert makes his mark on proceedings.
Being a former Bundesliga player himself, the 48-year-old Scottish coach commentated on several matches this season for Bundesliga's official stream, during which he also scouted some players himself.
Following the arrival of Stafylidis, the Scot remarked: "'I think the club have been following him for a little bit and I watched him myself, and I thought he looked very good. So let's see." - as per Daily Mail.
Here are five key traits of the Greek International which you need to know. This list covers both strength and weaknesses along with a few facts as well.
#5 Stafylidis doesn't have much top-flight experience
Prior to his move to FC Augsburg in the summer of 2015, Konstantinos Stafylidis was a benchwarmer at Bayer Leverkusen.
During his time with Die Werkself, the Greek made only one appearance for the Leverkusen senior team before being shipped off to Bavaria in 2015. Although he made his much-needed breakthrough at Augsburg, Stafylidis, to date, has made only 41 Bundesliga appearances in total.
Even though he did make 29 appearances in the Greek Super League beforehand, his lack of experience in any of the top five European leagues might be one of his weak spots as he gears up for Premier League action.
#4 His crossing is terrible
Stafylidis was the first choice left-back for Augsburg in the 2016-17 season. However, during that time, the Bavarians really struggled to create anything from the flanks, largely due to the poor crossing ability of their fullbacks, most notably Stafylidis.
FC Augsburg are a club known for their ability to score goals from headers, having players like Michael Gregoritsch and Alfred Finnbogasson. During the 2016-17 season, both of their frontline strikers in 'Finnbo' and Bobadilla failed to deliver any goals due to their lack of service from the flanks.
Thanks to new coach Manuel Baum, however, Augsburg have managed to turn it around this season. Replacing Stafylidis with Philipp Max has been one of his most highly appreciated moves. Max's effective crossing coupled with his proficiency from set-pieces has given a boost to the likes of Finnbogason while Max, himself, is currently the leading assist provider in the Bundesliga with a tally of ten assists.
Therefore, Stafylidis' terrible crossing definitely won't help Stoke City, especially in the Premier League where crossing the ball is a vital part of the game.
#3 He racks up good defensive numbers
Konstantin Stafylidis is darling for any stats guru, especially in the defensive department. In the 2016-17 season, the Greek International racked up some top-notch defensive numbers for Augsburg.
Astonishingly, he averages eight defensive actions per game, a tally which was only bettered by two central defenders in Jeffrey Gouweleeuw and Martin Hinteregger (not counting Kevin Danso because of his lack of game time in that corresponding season).
In 27 matches, the former Bayer Leverkusen defender notched up a stunning total of 111 clearances along with 89 interceptions. His impressive defensive numbers gives us a notion he's most definitely a defensively oriented fullback who can help out his team in defensive stances.
#2 He lacks creativity
As you would generally expect from any Greek defender, Stafylidis is not the greatest creative fullback in the world. He's regarded as a defensive-oriented fullback, which is seemingly growing out to be a rare kind these days.
The Greek International often looks clueless in tight spaces and is always fragile while on the ball. Unlike Philipp Max, the 24-year-old is not a specialist when it comes to working his way across the pitch with sublime passing and good link-up plays.
His lack of ball playing qualities and creativity restricts him from being a threat in the final third, apart from his marauding runs forward, of course. He's largely one-dimensional when it comes to his overall gameplay in the offensive half, meaning there's a little chance that he will prove to be a real asset for Paul Lambert's men in the attacking department.
#1 He has played in England before
During his time with Bayer Leverkusen, the Greek defender was sent on loan to Fulham in the summer of 2014.
He was surprisingly a constant figure for the Cottagers in the Championships with 38 appearances whilst also featuring in four FA Cup games.
Although he didn't make any notable impact with Fulham during that corresponding season, as they were nearly on the verge of relegation, his previous exposure in English football could help Stafylidis to quickly get used to the conditions in the Premier League.
