Stoke City manager Mark Hughes has revealed that he has been left disappointed on a number of occasions when trying to sign new players during the January transfer window.
The Potters have signed John Guidetti on loan from Manchester City and Stephen Ireland on a permanent deal, but Hughes concedes that numerous other agreements have fallen through.
"We felt we were close on a number of occasions prior to the window opening and we thought we would get our business done very quickly," he told Sky Sports News.
"You get close then all of a sudden you wake up one morning and you find the deal you think is on the table has gone somewhere else. So that's happened to us on a number of occasions."
Stoke are 13th in the Premier League.
