The Potters dedicate their entire website to their new winger

Looking at the homepage to Stoke’s official site you’d be forgiven for thinking they had signed Leo Messi rather than Matthew Etherington. The Potters have only just confirmed the capture of the West Ham winger for an undisclosed fee but they already have six separate stories dedicated to their “star” signing.

Unsurprisingly, Etherington’s departure isn’t the top story on West Ham’s website, with the rather more pressing concern of the thousandth inquiry into Carlos Tevez’ season in East London taking precedence.

The FA and Premier League have announced that they will investigate the most recent tribunal’s verdict that West Ham misled the Premier League to get permission to play Tevez in the final three matches of the season. It’s been almost four months since the tribunal findings became public knowledge so you have to question why it has taken them so long to come to this decision to investigate and whether it is fair to announce it in the middle of the transfer window, when it is bound to unsettle some of West Ham’s stars.

Could it be that the FA and Premier League are desperate to finally clarify the third-party ownership rules in case a certain Argentine striker becomes available in the summer? Tell us what you think with a comment below.