Butland looking to regain lost ground at Stoke

Butland sustained an ankle injury on international duty with England in March 2016 and is yet to regain match fitness. In his absence, former Derby goalkeeper Lee Grant has excelled with nine clean sheets.

(Reuters)

"He (Grant) knows I want the shirt, I know he wants to keep it and that's the way it is," the 24-year-old Butland told reporters.

"He's done fantastically... He's succeeded in everything he's been asked to do. I am thrilled for him. We've known each other for a while and we push each other.

"I'll have a good week of training while the boys are away on international duty and hopefully that'll get me up to speed and then I can join up fully with the rest of the squad next week."

(Reporting by Aditi Prakash in Bengaluru; editing by Sudipto Ganguly)