Huddersfield Town saw the opportunity to sign Slovenian centre-back Jon Gorenc Stankovic as just too good to turn down.

Head coach David Wagner isn’t the only admirer of the 6ft 3in Under 21 international, who is believed to have cost £600,00 from his old club Borussia Dortmund.

Back in his homeland, the player born in Slovenia’s capital Ljubljana is widely regarded as a shoo-in for future full international squads.

Video Loading

He has nine Under 21 caps and has already been called up twice by national coach Srecko Katanec, without actually playing.

Stankovic, originally a midfielder, was playing for his first club Domzale as a 16-year-old.

He joined Dortmund on a three-year deal in 2014, and linked up with Wagner at second-team level.

Stankovic has continued to progress, and was an unused substitute for the first team towards the end of last season.

The fact that Dortmund were willing to sell caused ripples in German football, and immediately alerted Wagner.

Town have already invested in two new centre-backs, Christopher Schindler for a club-record £1.8m from 1860 Munich and Michael Hefele from Dynamo Dresden.

And while Joel Lynch has been sold to Championship rivals QPR for a potential £1.5m and youngster William Boyle loaned to Kilmarnock, they still have skipper Mark Hudson and experienced Martin Cranie.

But Wagner wanted a player he believes has real potential and given his comfort on the ball, will be ideally suited to Town’s 4-2-3-1 full-throttle system.

Stankovic could well be used relatively sparingly this season.

But he has agreed terms through to 2020, when Town will have the chance to add another 12 months.

That means there is time for Wagner and his coaching staff to work with Stankovic.

His presence also means Cranie could provide cover for Tommy Smith at right-back, with the former Barnsley skipper given a run-out in that position in the opening friendly at Guiseley last Wednesday.