Stoke City playmaker Bojan Krkic is expected to make his return to action in a pre-season friendly against Brentford on Saturday.

The 24-year-old has been out of action since January with a cruciate knee ligament injury.

Stoke assistant coach Mark Bowen is confident that Bojan and teammate Ryan Shawcross, who has been struggling with a back problem, will feature this weekend.

"I would imagine that both players will get a significant amount of playing time," he told the club's official website. "I don't know what the manager's team is at the moment but it is extremely likely that they will get some valuable playing time."

Bojan scored five goals in 18 appearances for the Potters last season before being struck down by injury.