Stoke City would 'dearly love' Steven N'Zonzi stay

Stoke City chief executive Tony Scholes has said that he would "dearly love" Steven N'Zonzi to sign a new contract, but also admitted that it might not be in the club's hands.

The Frenchman has just a year left on his current deal and the Potters are keen to tie him to an extension this summer.

However, the midfielder is said to be interested in a move away and recent reports suggested that talks over a new contract had broken down.

"Steven's a great footballer, and obviously player of the year, and we would dearly love to keep him but we will see," Scholes told The Sentinel.

"We don't want to be losing players of quality like Steven but that's not always in our hands."

N'Zonzi has scored seven goals in three seasons for Stoke since joining the Potters from Blackburn Rovers in 2012.