Stoke are ready to rival both Bournemouth and Leicester for highly-rated Udinese and Czech Republic midfielder Jakub Jankto in January.
According to the Daily Mirror, the Potters have registered an interest in the 20-year-old, who spent last season on loan in Serie B with Ascoli.
Udinese are reportedly very keen to keep hold of the U21 international and have slapped an £8million price tag on him to ward off any potential interest.
However, Jankto is out of contract at the end of the season and so the Serie A club may be forced into negotiations if they cannot get him to sign a new deal before January.
