Cuellar has been laid low with a calf strain since his £7.8million switch from Rangers last month.

But he has now recovered and will be looking to prove his fitness at the Britannia Stadium ahead of Villa's next Premier League clash at Tottenham on September 15.

Villa manager Martin O'Neill said: "Carlos joined in with training from last week and he is keen to make an impression in the Premier League."

Midfielder Steve Sidwell, a £5.5million summer capture from Chelsea, will start on the comeback trail at Stoke - also after a calf setback.

Sidwell has not tasted any action since the Intertoto Cup clash with Odense on July 26.

He will be striving to stake his claim in the centre of the park and challenge the likes of Gareth Barry, Nigel Reo-Coker and Stiliyan Petrov for a spot.

Sidwell said: "Obviously it's not been the best of starts for me, tearing the calf. It's been a frustrating time.

"I can understand why we're being cautious about the injury.

"There's a long season ahead of us and we have had to make sure I was right before returning to action.

"Touch-wood, I've never been one for being injured. Throughout my career I've been very lucky.

"The timing of the injury has been poor for me. It's a new club and I've wanted to impress and show everyone what I can do."