Beattie unlikely to return at Wolves

Stoke manager Tony Pulis appears to have ruled out the possibility of a return for striker James Beattie this weekend.

The 32-year-old former England forward has not played for seven weeks due to a knee injury which required surgery. He played a full 90 minutes for the reserves earlier this week but Pulis is still unlikely to include him in his squad for Sunday's Barclays Premier League trip to Wolves.

Pulis said: "He played in a reserve game on Tuesday and looked a little bit short to be honest."

With a fitness doubt over striker Ricardo Fuller, that will do little to quell speculation over Beattie's future at the Britannia Stadium.

That has seemed uncertain since a high-profile row between the player and Pulis in the dressing room at Arsenal last December.

"The lad Louis Moult has been on the bench. If Ric is not fit I will most probably go with Louis," Pulis added.

"He has done really well and scored a lot of goals in the reserves and did well again the other night."

Copyright (c) PA Sport 2009, All Rights Reserved.