The England Under-21 defender is thrilled to have signed a four-year contract with the Potters after moving from Southampton for an undisclosed fee.

Davies said: "It is great to be back in the Premier League. Stoke have put a lot of faith in me and I hope I can repay that by helping to keep them up.

"I know it is going to be a long hard season but that is a challenge I will relish and I will look forward to all the ups and downs. That is just part of football.

Learning curve

"It will be a learning curve for all of us but I honestly think Stoke can upset a few teams this season.

"It was not a great start [a 3-1 defeat to Bolton] but they are the kind of team who are perhaps more suited to play against us and I am sure we will upset a few.

"The manager is a fantastic guy and there is a great bunch of lads there. I watched their opening match at Bolton and they all came and introduced themselves.

"We know it will be tough to stay up but we will give it a right good go and I really believe we can stay up and then build from there."

Davies is impatient to get fit for the fight as quickly as possible following summer surgery on a knee.

He took advantage of an enforced lay-off because of a fractured cheekbone which ruled him out of Southampton's last nine matches of the season.

He added: "Stoke understand the situation and their physios are working hard to get me fit as soon as possible.

"I have not yet played a game in pre-season but I am not far away from joining in training. But I am being cautious because I don't want to come back and then break down again.

"I am really looking forward to playing for Stoke in the Premier League but still sad to have left Southampton because I had a great time there.

"The chance to play in the Premier League was very tempting but I was not looking to go. There is a difficult situation there and it was an up and down time.

"I had four managers in less than a year there and finished the season with a fractured cheekbone - but won the Player of the Year award.

"I was not looking to leave but I do see myself as a Premier League player. I did well when I was at Middlesbrough but I needed regular first-team football and now I am delighted to be back at the top level."