Stoke City midfielder Stephen Ireland has signed a six-month contract extension as he continues to recover from a broken leg that cost him the entire 2016-17 campaign, the Premier League club said.

Ireland, who joined Stoke from Aston Villa on a permanent basis in January 2014 after a loan stint in 2013, sustained the injury last April.

"Stephen has been forced to put his career on hold after suffering a very serious injury in training through no fault of his own," Chief Executive Tony Scholes said on the club's website.

"He's working incredibly hard to get himself back to full fitness and we felt that it was only right to offer him a short-term contract to give him peace of mind while he continues with that process."

Ireland has collected six caps for the Republic of Ireland and was named Manchester City's Player of the Season in 2009.

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