Banish the Blues

Toure the scorer again consigning Stoke to another defeat away from home

If there is one ground I want Stoke City to win at more than any, it is the Etihad Stadium. Some may say Old Trafford, The Emirates or even Anfield, but to me Manchester City is the home of everything that is wrong about present day football: wealthy owners, extortionate transfer fees and wages, and no end in sight for a financial black hole that may one day engulf the game in this country. Financial Fair Play was meant to level the playing field, allow teams with less wealth to have a better chance against those with the mega-rich owners, but with backdoor sponsorship deals allowing owners to pump more money into their clubs, it is harder to see parity ever returning to the game. On the field, the same can be said with parity being hard to find in the decision-making of referees involved in top six games. Against Manchester United and Liverpool this season, Stoke have come off worse for decisions that a referee has failed to make correctly. This was the instance against Manchester City, who truly lived up to their tag as a 'big' team, knocking around Stoke players who are made out of tougher stuff than the ragdolls those in blue made them look like.

Vincent Kompany, one of the league's best defenders
had a poor day at the office despite the clean sheet he finished with

Manchester City captain Vincent Kompany was the villain of the piece, consistently fouling Stoke players during the course of the game. After receiving an early yellow card, Kompany had the potential to have been sent off (for his second yellow) on no more than three other occasions. One particular challenge, a high boot when challenging for the ball with Crouch, would not have been unworthy of a yellow card for certain, so Stoke can feel hard done by that Manchester City's best defender remained on the pitch. They can also feel aggrieved that one of City's first choice midfielders, Fernandinho remained on the field after a vicious lunge on Peter Odemwingie, a foul that could have been a red card for violent conduct, if not for the potential of the foul preventing a goal-scoring opportunity. Against nine men, Stoke would have had a chance of taking the game to Manchester City in the second half, their showing in the first 45 minutes indicative of a team that was fully aware that they could not go all out attack at the Etihad, but would push forward when the most prudent opportunities presented themselves. Alas, these are all ifs and the result stands. Stoke needed to freshen things up in the second half and Manchester City capitalised soon after the first substitution, with Yaya Toure taking advantage of the gaps created by a shift in tactics, plus a lack of awareness from Charlie Adam to slip into the box and get a toe onto the end of Aleksandar Kolarov's cross. It is not inconceivable that if the change had been made later, or not at all, then the goal may not have happened as the team were accommodating Wilson Palacios into the midfield, thus confusing Charlie Adam as to what his role in the eleven was at that moment in time. Nevertheless he should have run onto the ball and prevented Toure from having such an easy run, but all the blame cannot be put at his feet.

Back to the Brit - Gunning for Trouble:

Mesut Ozil on his home debut for Arsenal, against Stoke City

Whilst losing to Manchester City was an undesirable result, it was a good performance. At times it was backs to the wall, but only Bayern Munich, Chelsea and Barcelona have gone to the Etihad this season and left with three points. If the momentum from this performance, plus the previous games against Manchester United and Southampton can be taken ahead into the game with Arsenal, there is no reason Stoke cannot get a positive result. The Gunners will be without their talisman of the start of the season, Mesut Ozil, who has dropped in fan's estimations due to recent poor performances. Aaron Ramsey, Stoke-on-Trent's "favourite" player will be absent due to injury so Arsenal are weaker than in the previous fixture in key areas. Theo Walcott, though absent for some time now, is a miss for them as well as he offered a pacey threat down the wings that Arsene Wenger seems reluctant to trust Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain to give. Tomas Rosicky may earn a second consecutive start after a fine performance against Sunderland, and wherever he plays, Stoke would be wise to mark him tightly as he can start or finish a move if given too much space.

Stoke's not so super-sub: John Guidetti

If there is one area that Stoke should look to try and alter their style of play ahead of this game, it is in attack where Peter Crouch, who has led the line admirably in recent weeks, will be up against a player in equal size and stature in Per Mertesacker. Now would be a good time to alter the frontline, if just for this one game, and try utilising a pacey forward like John Guidetti or switching Peter Odemwingie from the wings to the front line. Guidetti would be the best option as his inclusion would require the least reconstruction in other areas of the team, whilst having Odemwingie on the right wing would be good as long as Nacho Monreal is playing. Monreal has looked susceptible whenever he has played this season, and as a result Kieran Gibbs is rightly ahead of him in the pecking order, which is a surprise as Monreal came to England with fairly good reviews from his performances for Malaga in recent seasons. Having two wingers who can cause trouble for the opposition full-backs but also a pacey forward would give Stoke multiple angles to attack Arsenal with, though considering Mark Hughes's team selections this season, it would be a shock to see any drastic changes from the eleven that started against Manchester City.

Away from the Brit - Euro 2016 beckons!

Gareth Barry challenges for the ball against Switzerland

Before England have even been knocked out of a World Cup, their next Championship is on the horizon, with qualifiers announced against Switzerland, Slovenia, Estonia, San Marino and Lithuania. The toughest teams in the group are Switzerland and Slovenia, whilst the difference in quality between those two nations is vast as well. Switzerland are a rising footballing nation, with several well known players in their national team. Whilst beatable by a strong England team, they should finish second in the table. Third place, now worthy of a play off place, should then be a fight between Slovenia and Estonia, with the Slovenians my favourites to progress despite Estonia doing well in the last European Championship qualifiers, losing out to the Republic of Ireland over two legs. With a lot of players based in Italy's Serie A, the Slovenian team, in theory, will be set out well and be tough to break down, similar to Montenegro in England's recent qualifying campaigns, but lacking a specialist forward ala Jovetic and Vucinic for Montenegro.

England U21s in action against Scotland last year

For the next campaign to give any hope for the future of the national team, England will have to blood more U21 players. Looking at the last squad to play for the U21s, four out of the 23 man squad had featured for the senior team (Jack Butland, Carl Jenkinson, Wilfried Zaha and Raheem Sterling) whilst numerous others have been playing in the Premier League this season and performed admirably without receiving a call-up (Luke Shaw, James Ward-Prowse, Saido Berahino). Whilst some names may not be worthy of a call-up in the immediate future, Hodgson will have to show an intention to refresh the squad. What has concerned me regarding the current World Cup squad potentials is that players who are not playing regularly for their club may still be considered for their country, such as Ashley Cole and Frank Lampard. Jermaine Defoe has been offered a chance if he scores goals for Toronto FC, but he hadn't been scoring goals regularly for Tottenham before this was announced so what is to say he will be able to slot past Gianluigi Buffon in June come pressure time? James Milner, whilst like a Jon Walters work-horse, is not a regular for Manchester City, coming in for specific games in a rotation system. Should this put him ahead of Jordan Henderson who, despite his critics for his first two seasons at Liverpool, has impressed in a support role for Steven Gerrard this year. Jack Wilshere has played more regularly this season compared to the previous two seasons, but has his form suggested that he is a must for the plane to Brazil? At present I would say no. The same goes for Tom Cleverley who despite being a good retainer of possession has not contributed enough positives to his own season to earn a trip to the World Cup. All of these players, they all remain with a chance of making the plane to Brazil because Hodgson has not given the most promising of the U21s enough of a chance, and to call too many of them up for the showpiece tournament would risk failure beyond the current expectation the country has. For Euro 2016, with a good group to ready them, he needs to say goodbye to the old guard and place his faith in the future of England, for the future of England.

Quick Snippet - Didier Drogba and Chelsea:

Former hero, potential villain, when Drogba returns to face Chelsea

When it became official that Didier Drogba was leaving Chelsea and also the Premier League, there were mixed emotions here. Drogba in his prime had summed up all the worst of Chelsea, a team that were lucky, cheated to gain unfair advantages, and were unashamedly brazen when things did not go there way. The number of goals he scored for Chelsea was phenomenal, not necessarily due to the amount, but the number of important goals. In a cup final, he'd score. In a tight league match (against Stoke for instance), he'd open up the match with a goal. Yet since he has left the Premier League, it has to be said that something has been missing. Whilst he was a good target for good-natured heckling from the stands, Chelsea have enough players who supporters can 'abuse' from the stands. The only way I can sum this snippet up is by saying that when Drogba left Chelsea, they lost something important: a goalscorer. And considering Jose Mourinho has done little to deny this week that he lacks faith in his current group of forwards, would it be a surprise for Drogba to have one last swansong in the Premier League?

Two Points Gained

Odemwingie scores his first for the club against Southampton

Two goals away from home and things looked bright, certainly after seeing Peter Odemwingie opening his account for the club with a sublime finish. What has been said about it is true, that if any other striker in the league had scored that goal, no eyelids would have been batted in Stoke-on-Trent. But, because no Stoke striker has shown the prowess the finish a chance, with confidence, it looks like Stoke have found the finisher they have been after, mixed with a bit of Jon Walters's workhorse tenacity. Most important though was the timing of the goal. After being behind only seven minutes into the game, due to a special free kick from England hopeful Rickie Lambert, Stoke needed the goal to have hope of going into half time with something to fight for. So to concede again so soon after to Sean Davis's cross-shot was galling. Where do you lie blame with a goal like that? Shawcross was too far away, Begovic was wrong-footed and Cameron was too slow to get anything onto the end of the ball. It would be harsh to blame any one of them, but it has to be said that Mauricio Pochettino's claims that his team conceded soft goals is baffling. A sublime free kick and a cross that found its way into the net have little to no comparison to a well placed through-ball finish for Odemwingie's goal, and Stoke's second, from a corner. Peter Crouch, holding off his marker to get to the ball first and tap it in, though whether it was with his head of his leg, it matters not.

Lambert's opening goal gave Begovic no chance

Despite a save from a free kick in the second half, Stoke were untroubled for the most part with both sides appearing satisfied with the draw. So the first point of a two game week gained. What could be taken out of this match? First of all is that Lady Luck has not been wooed sufficiently enough, despite last week's victory over Manchester United. The two goals conceded leave a bad taste in the mouth of supporters as they were unpreventable. Adam handballed in the lead up to Southampton's first but a goal may have been created anyway had he not caused a stoppage in play, whilst the second no one knew what was going to happen before the ball hit the net. For Stoke to have a fruitful end to the season, they need a few more slices of luck on their side. Also what was noticeable is that we are capable of scoring goals at the ground of 'tough' teams. The label 'tough' alongside Southampton comes from the fact that most pundits predicted a comfortable win for Southampton, based on their lofty league position, crop of young English players, and their current form being satisfying. Coming away from St. Mary's with only a point is not a bad thing, but given what went against the team, supporters should not be criticised for saying that Stoke could, and maybe should have left with more.

Return to the Brit - On/Off Stoke vs Swansea:

Peter Crouch's second in consecutive games, taking his league tally
to six goals for the season.

Considering the damage the winds had caused across the North of England this midweek, it was a surprise to see Stoke's match go ahead. Despite an adboard being blown over and corner flags fighting to stay in the ground, the match went ahead and Stoke, for the second consecutive home game, went ahead in the 17th minute through Peter Crouch. A Peter Odemwingie shot cannoned off the left hand post and pinged its way back to Peter Crouch just inside the area, by the D, and he slotted the ball home through a sea of Swansea players. A good goal in the conditions, and apart from a Nathan Dyer effort that flew just past the left hand post, Swansea did not look like scoring in the first half. Breaking a trend seen in recent Britannia Stadium fixtures though, Swansea came back, scoring through Chico Flores, who headed the ball just out of Asmir Begovic's reach. Harsh on Stoke, but Swansea were unlucky not to get a second, with the hard work of Ryan Shawcross racing back to clear the ball off the goalline preventing Wilfried Bony getting his name onto the scoresheet. Once again though, luck intervened and chose once more not to favour Stoke, denying them a penalty after a Flores tackle on Peter Crouch in the dying moments of the match.

Spot the difference between Stoke and Swansea players!

So two points from two games. A point against Southampton was understandable, but only a point against Swansea raises questions of Stoke's capability to beat the teams around us. With games against Manchester City and Arsenal coming up next, a five point buffer away from the bottom three would have been most welcome, now though taking a point at least from these two games might be needed. As for the Swansea game, whilst it highlighted, once again, a lack of luck Stoke seem to have had all season, it has made me question the future of Peter Crouch at Stoke City. With 8 goals in all competitions this season he has matched his tally for last season and is only 6 goals away from matching his tally for his first season at the club, where he also played in one extra competition. Whilst matching that tally would be some achievement, come the end of the season, Peter Crouch will only have one year left on the four year contract he signed upon joining Stoke in 2011. With the likelihood of extension low, it is good for Stoke that he is scoring goals as this could be his last season at the club. His transfer fee of £10m (possibly rising to £12m) cannot be recouped now, but there could still be a chance of making some money from a player who up to now has scored 30 goals in 105 appearances for the club. If a London-based club, QPR for instance if they gain promotion, shows an interest, a fee of £2.5m up to £3m would not be unreasonable for a player of Crouch's quality. Based on the transfer fees Stoke have paid in the last two transfer windows as well, this would take Crouch's high wages of the bill and leave a slice of cash to buy a replacement for Crouch with. All hypotheticals, but if the Swansea match showed something, it is that Crouch has still got something to offer Stoke in these remaining months of the season, and hopefully other clubs will be taking note.

Away from the Brit - Fortress Etihad Breached!

Manchester City marshalled at home by Chelsea

The danger of predicting any league finish is that a sudden surge of form, by a player or a team as a whole can change everything. In my half-time report I noted that as Chelsea were not scoring enough goals through their three recognised strikers, they would struggle to finish inside the top four. Their attack at the time was not free-flowing and it had not been long since they were leaking goals against Stoke at the Britannia. What I failed to factor in was that a player, maybe not world-class but one of the best in the Premier League, could take Chelsea by the scruff of their neck and drag them up the league. Eden Hazard has been in magical form of late, and though he did not score at the Etihad, he caused Manchester City problems on the counter attack, always sitting on the half-way line at corners, constantly posing a question for their defence. It showed that Manchester City, whilst free-flowing at home in attack, do not like to defend. Vincent Kompany, whilst showing a steady level of form, has not hit the heights that left some supporters in disbelief that he did not earn a place on either of the last two FIFA teams of the year. Martin Demichelis has warranted criticism for his defending, with age affecting his ability to defend as can be seen across the city with Rio Ferdinand's light dwindling. The key though was that whenever Chelsea defended, they made sure that they had bodies forward, ready for the counter attack. How can this be converted to allow a Stoke team to walk away from the Etihad with their heads held high at least?

Assaidi's pace could be key to any point earned at the Etihad

First of all, Chelsea played with a tight central four players. Terry, Cahill, Matic and Luiz never too far away from each other. For this reason I believe bringing in Wilson Palacios for man of the moment Charlie Adam would be a wise move. Palacios is, if anything, disciplined. Placing him alongside Whelan will then give Shawcross and (Huth hopefully, Wilson if not) the midfield barrier they need to stop the likes of David Silva, Sergio Aguero and/or Stevan Jovetic from dropping deep and dictating play on the edge of Stoke's area. Beside this alteration, Stoke should stick with their most recent formation, with Jon Walters operating behind Peter Crouch. Part of his role would be staying as tight as possible to Yaya Toure, making sure that come the end of the game, Toure feels battered and bruised, he knows that he has had a game! In doing this, it places responsibility on Toure's midfield partner (Fernandinho, Garcia, Milner) to let the game flow. If the 'middle four' players do their job correctly, they should be able to prevent one of the three aforementioned players from having too great an impact on the game. This then allows Stoke to attack out wide with Odemwingie and Assaidi having enough pace to track back when Manchester City attack, but also to give them food for thought when Stoke go forward. Gael Clichy and Aleksander Kolarov aren't too different from Luke Shaw and you would hope that Odemwingie would be anticipating a good match-up on the day whoever plays against him. Zabaleta is a trickier customer, frequently mentioned as one of the most steady right-backs in the league in recent seasons - scoring against Stoke once or twice to prove the point! Assaidi will have to be alert to the threat Zabaleta will pose, but also try to cause the Argentinian problems that he has not been coping too well with in recent weeks. If Odemwingie or Assaidi can get the better of their full-backs, then in Peter Crouch there is a man in form and hopefully if he plays off Martin Demichelis, Stoke will have a chance to take something from Manchester City's fortress.

Quick Snippet - John Terry

John Terry in one of his last England international matches

"There have been calls for his return to the international set-up," is the go-to phrase journalists have used in the last 48 hours regarding the possibility of John Terry's reinclusion into the England squad ahead of the 2014 World Cup. On paper it makes some sense. John Terry has been a mainstay (until last week's game against Newcastle) in the Chelsea defence this season, whilst his main defensive partner has been England centre-back Gary Cahill. The theory is simple: bring John Terry back and let him and Cahill replicate their form that has created one of the meanest Premier League defences of the season. Personally though, I am glad Roy Hodgson resisted the urges to reopen that avenue, offering a public olive branch to the player. First of all it would display that a player is bigger than his country when a manager is calling for a retired player to come back and play for their country. Once you are retired from international duty, that should be that, no returns. Some have done it in recent years: Jamie Carragher, Ben Foster to name just two, but the principle should remain the same. Once you think you cannot do your club and country good service, you stop playing and give others a chance. Although some may argue that John Terry only walked because of the aftermath of having the England captaincy taken away from him, for a second time, he has been playing better since not playing international matches as well. An added factor that has been taken into account very little is that England have an established central pairing in Gary Cahill and Phil Jagielka. In the world of hypotheticals, which is where all this is at the moment, if Terry had been recalled, and then suffered an injury that ruled him out of the tournament, Jagielka would be playing knowing that his manager had not got the confidence in him to stick with him and resist the urges to recall Terry. Another factor is that it would prevent another, younger, centre-back from getting to a major tournament and gaining experience of being involved in the build-up to big games. For me, there are too many negatives to recalling Terry that outweigh the positives his current form is bringing to his Chelsea team.

It Doesn't Mata

Wilson Palacios vs Eden Hazard

If this past week could be typified in any way, although slightly cliché I feel 'The Good, The Bad and The Ugly' would be a suitable description. The first match of the last week was at Stamford Bridge, with the game at Chelsea being the second of three consecutive away games. Out of the three, I would describe this as the ugly match, where I found it hard to come out of the game with any positivity. Stoke went into the game off the back of losses to Crystal Palace and Liverpool and at the time needed a positive performance, at least, to give the supporters hope ahead of a midweek trip to Capital One Cup Finalists Sunderland. What they got was very uninspiring. The game plan, it seems, was to restrict Chelsea's efforts on goal and to play on the counter-attack. In principle this was a good game plan, and considering the only goal of the game came from a set-piece, arguably it was a worthwhile ploy. Where it fell apart though was the goal. Afterwards there was little sign of a Plan B, with the use of substitutes, not for the first time this season, confusing supporters.Whilst Charlie Adam has been in good form in recent weeks, his introduction at the expense of Marko Arnautovic was intriguing as Jonathan Walters had rarely threatened during the game. He was not the only one to lack threat though as one shot on target all game suggested a turbulent week ahead for the Potters.

Adam Johnson pouncing on Asmir Begovic's poor parry

During the Chelsea game, one thing of concern was a lack of confidence Asmir Begovic appeared to exude compared to normal. Perhaps he was worried about the splint around his broken finger, or it was just simply a struggle to get back into the hustle and bustle of top level goalkeeping, but against Chelsea he looked a bit rusty at the routine goalkeeping duties. After travelling north to Sunderland for the final part of the Potters three game away tour, with new signing Peter Odemwingie in tow, Stoke fans saw the bad side of football. To be fair to them, this was not necessarily a bad team performance, but it was not worthy of being called good either! Whilst it was more encouraging than the Chelsea game, which isn't too hard considering the difference in quality between the two teams, more chances for Stoke and less for Sunderland gave Stoke hope, despite an eventual 1-0 loss, the third from the three away games. The goal came from a poor parry from the aforementioned, and usually reliable Asmir Begovic. Considering all he has done for Stoke in the past two years, he cannot be made an example of for an error, yet you feel if he had been 100% fit, the parry would have been stronger and gone wider of goal, perhaps giving Marc Wilson or Erik Pieters more time to recover. In the present, he has not looked back since this mistake, but at that moment, you would expect Begovic himself to have expected better of himself. Stoke's attacking, whilst better than previous games, still lacked a cutting edge. An example of this came in the first half when Ryan Shawcross, unmarked at a set-piece, glanced his free header directly in Vito Mannone's direction. He tried to make amends in the second half with a header against the bar, whilst Peter Odemwingie had a shot saved by Mannone after some neat footwork to try and regain equality on the scoreboard. The intentions were there from Stoke, just not the final touch. This was summed up by Steven Nzonzi's red card (a second yellow card) for 'bringing down' Jozy Altidore on a break of play. Despite little contact between the two players, which in essence was a small shove on Altidore by Nzonzi, he saw red due to the initial intention he had of stopping the American forward. It was a harsh punishment, but if it was any other team besides Stoke, you would want to see a second yellow card.

Adam, with a wicked deflection, puts Stoke a goal up
against Manchester United

Nzonzi's misfortune was to be Stoke's gain as his absence offered Mark Hughes an opportunity to experiment. He could have brought Wilson Palacios into the side and made a like-for-like change, yet declined this opportunity, instead reverting to a 4-2-4 system. Peter Odemwingie, impressing on his debut more centrally than wide was asked to fill the right hand spot once again, with Jon Walters sitting behind Peter Crouch, with another surprise inclusion being Marko Arnautovic over Oussama Assaidi. Charlie Adam and Glenn Whelan occupied the central midfield slots, whilst the back four remained unchanged from Sunderland. Manchester United without surprise chose to field their new trinity of Robin van Persie, Wayne Rooney and Juan Mata from the off, yet David Moyes's late-match tactical plans were thrown into disarray early into the game with an injury to Jonny Evans. This tactical shuffle could only positively affect the team though as it introduced an attack minded Rafael at right-back for centre-back-cum-full-back Chris Smalling. Despite this change, United went behind to a bit of good fortune, for a change, to the Potters, with Charlie Adam's long range free-kick taking a deflection off Michael Carrick, wrong-footing David de Gea and going into the empty corner of the net. Another injury, this time to Phil Jones after a collision with Jon Walters caused another change for Manchester United, this time though I feel it did impact on the game negatively for last season's Champions, and positively for Stoke. Lady luck shined for Stoke and for Mark Hughes when Danny Welbeck was given the order to enter the game. Whilst I have time for Danny Welbeck as a player, I feel it was the wrong time to introduce him to this game as their midfield wasn't dominating and losing Michael Carrick to the defence would only hinder their performance. Although these thoughts appeared to put a jinx on Stoke's chances of victory when Robin van Persie equalised, they proved worthwhile doubts. With no shielding midfielders, performing the Carrick role if you like, Charlie Adam was allowed to run onto Marko Arnautovic's 'flick-on' without interference and pile-drive the ball into the net. Here the scene was set and things were going Stoke's way. The opposition had lost their best midfielder to fill in as a defender, whilst their star signing was flitting in and out of the game, sitting in the hole, rather than trying to take a hold of it. Stoke in the meantime had fortune with their two injuries, as they happened to the two players whose absence benefitted the team in the closing stages. Jon Walters, fortunate not to have received a harsh red card moments before his substitution was groggy from several heavy challenges and his replacement, Stephen Ireland, allowed Stoke some composure on the ball when the Potters were in possession. Marko Arnautovic also suffered injury in the second half and was replaced by Oussama Assaidi, and whilst it was unlucky for Arnautovic who had threatened in the second half in particular, Assaidi offered fresh legs and a new challenge, forcing de Gea into one notable smart save. The use of substitutions in the modern game was clear in these 90 minutes as with one change left each, both managers showed their intentions with their last change. Moyes wanting to save van Persie for battles ahead replaced him for Javier Hernandez, whilst Mark Hughes took Glenn Whelan off to freshen up his midfield for the final rally from United. One was cautious for the future, one was cautious of the present. In the end, Hughes won out in his use of substitutions, and his tactics for the game worked out. If he can find some consistency in team selections and changes, it is not impossible for this result not to be a one-off success.

When the Saints Go Marching In:

Glenn Whelan marking James Ward Prowse in November

Unless you are a supporter of Portsmouth, it would be hard to say Southampton haven't had a good season. Sitting ninth in the Premier League at present, they are one of the few teams, at present, who look out of danger of relegation. It would take a freefall of epic proportions for them to suffer now, especially with so many teams below them and with so many good players still in their squad. However, they have dipped in form in recent weeks, with the absence of Victor Wanyama a key factor at times. Whilst Steven Davis and Jack Cork have been able deputies, they have appeared better this season when the Kenyan has started. His return coincided with a 3-0 win at Craven Cottage, and whilst Fulham were at fault for their loss in this game, Southampton will be in form when Stoke head to St Mary's this weekend.

Rodriguez finishing with the wind past Begovic

As in November, the key to stopping Southampton will be in how relentless Stoke are in their pressing. Whilst they have some good players, some such as Adam Lallana who I believe could be outsiders for the England World Cup squad, the more pressure the Stoke players put on them, the more liable they are to making a mistake. The same though has to be said for us so calm heads must prevail at the weekend for any result in this game. For this reason I would be tempted to make only one change from last week's starting eleven, with Steven Nzonzi coming in for Glenn Whelan. Whilst Whelan did nothing wrong against United, plus Nzonzi has not been in the best form of his Stoke career in recent months, he is a player who can pick a pass under pressure when he is in the right frame of mind. Sticking with the shape Stoke employed against Manchester United, but just altering the tactics and personnel slightly may bring about a positive result.

Transfer Business:

Odemwingie is a good stop-gap purchase, but not the future of the club

It has been a mixed bag for transfers this window, with the purchases made not weakening the team, but there is a feeling that they might not be ones we will remember for the right reasons in years to come. The first transfer was a formality, with Stephen Ireland confirming his move to Stoke on a permanent transfer with a contract until the end of the season. This allowed the club to bring John Guidetti in, who to date has made two appearances off the bench totalling 19 minutes in match time. A majority of Stoke supporters are frustrated on his behalf that he hasn't seen more game time in the hope of breaking into the league team, but with 14 fixtures still to be played, he has the time to make an impression yet. Peter Odemwingie was an odd transfer, certainly from left field as no one expected this to be the last transfer of the window for the club. Whilst I believe he will have his uses during his 18 month contract with Stoke, I do not believe he will be a player Stoke can rely on. After two games for the club, one a win over Manchester United, this may be a harsh judgement, but unless goals start to flow from the Nigerian, I feel this may be just a transfer to fill a squad spot rather than to challenge those already within it. After the permanent signing of Juan Agudelo, he has been loaned out to FC Utrecht, which will be good for Stoke's young American so that he gets game time in European football. Hopefully by next season he will have a work permit and be able to focus on a good start to his Stoke career. As for other outgoings, Odemwingie's arrival also meant the departure of Kenwyne Jones. To say he was an enigmatic figure at the club would be an understatement, but to this day some fondness for him remains, despite the nature of his exit from the club. His first season at the club was full of highs, with his goals en route to a FA Cup Final sticking most fondly in my memory, even though his last three years have been more painful due to his lack of game time rather than to his unimpressive performances when playing. I wish him some luck at Cardiff, not enough to justify his exit from the club, but enough so that he does not believe Stoke destroyed his career, but that he failed to push it on himself. There have been loan moves for Maurice Edu (to Philadelphia Union), Brek Shea (to Barnsley) and Jamie Ness (to Leyton Orient) and I hope all three have successful spells away from the club, although it is likely that Edu will remain in the USA so here I say thanks for wanting to join Stoke, even if the move failed to work out for both parties.

Quick Snippet - Bizarre transfers!

Potentially the most shocking transfer of the century!
Adel Taarabt from Fulham to AC Milan

Two transfers on Deadline Day left me wondering where I can get myself an agent. I cannot kick a ball for my life, but sometimes I wonder if those who play can! Seeing AC Milan going in for Adel Taarabt left me scratching my head, and I'm sure I felt my skull after news broke that Philippe Senderos had moved from the same club (Fulham) to Valencia. Adel Taarabt, whilst capable of occasional moments of brilliance, has struggled to find his way in a relegation threatened team. So why have a team with such prestige as AC Milan gone in for him? Perhaps an answer will be found in time, but at the moment I feel that Taarabt's agent is a very good salesman! The same can be said of Senderos, guilty of fouling Stephen Ireland and getting away with it in October's fixture, yet now he is enjoying a move to Spain. Whilst Fulham will be glad to get these two players off their wage bill, it is hard to understand how they both found their way to such prestigious clubs in Europe, when in my opinion they would struggle to get in most SkyBet Championship sides.

Does it Mata?

Steven Nzonzi and Joel Ward battling for possession

Did the loss at Crystal Palace badly affect Stoke City's hopes and aspirations for the season? It does not help them reach their targets, no loss would, yet they still remain in an intriguing position along with eleven other teams.Two wins from 20th placed Cardiff could send them up to 10th with results going their way. So for Stoke in 14th with only 2 points between themselves and 10th, the gap going up should not be bothersome. The gap going down is more of a concern, with only 4 points separating Stoke from the foot of the table, yet there are positives in the next batch of Premier League fixtures. Norwich, Swansea, Fulham, Crystal Palace, Hull, Aston Villa, West Brom, West Ham, Sunderland and naturally Stoke all have the potential to drop points in the next round of fixtures due to a large amount of these teams facing off against one another. These games will be seen by all teams as a chance to break away from the bottom pack, and Stoke, travelling to Sunderland, have to make sure that they are in the group breaking off towards the top half of the table. There is potential for a tough game after Sunderland's impressive aggregate victory over Manchester United in the League Cup semi-final, and a FA Cup fourth round fixture against Kidderminster is between them and a game against the Potters. Whilst the Black Cats play a Conference side, the Potters will be facing off against a side that are about to sell their two-time player of the season - Juan Mata -  to Manchester United, a game also made more difficult by the victory Stoke achieved in December. Chelsea will be wanting revenge, and Stoke will have to ready themselves for perhaps Chelsea's performance of the season. Come the game at the Stadium of Light on Wednesday, whose team will be more prepared for the game, and who will be the more hungry for the victory? Whatever the result against Chelsea, they need to refocus their attention towards the league, and fast.

John Guidetti on his Stoke debut, but when will he come good?

Despite only playing one game for Stoke City, I feel that the pressure on John Guidetti is growing by the day. Despite public assurances that Kenwyne Jones has not burned all bridges with the club after his failed attempts to manufacture a transfer, it is highly unlikely that he will feature regularly in the first team between now and the end of his contract. This leaves Peter Crouch and John Guidetti as Stoke's only recognised strikers. Some have noted that Jon Walters could play as the sole man up front if injuries forced the situation upon the team, but I believe that as a player, he suits the role of a number 10, sitting in the hole and doing the dirty work in attack, rather than the number 9 role of finishing any chance that comes his way. This naturally comes from the past and current manager's preference to play him on the wing at times rather than as part of a front pairing, plus his goal tally for the season is not encouraging despite the number of chances he has had in games this season. I must make clear that whilst this is not a deliberate criticism of Jonathan Walters, it is an explanation as to why we need reinforcements in January if possible.

Jason Puncheon goes from Villain to Hero with one goal

The fact is that the transition Stoke City are attempting to make from one era to another is not going smoothly at the moment. Like a rollercoaster there have been highs and lows, but you have to know where you will level out at the end. At the moment, it is hard to know with the congestion in the table, but what we can tell is that it will be a tough fight. Prior to kick-off at Selhurst Park, I had belief that Stoke would dominate possession over Palace and that with a bit of trickery from Oussama Assaidi or a shot from range from Charlie Adam, Stoke would make their territorial advantage count. Whilst we had the advantage on the ball (57% possession), we failed to pressure Julian Speroni enough, with only two shots on target troubling him in 90 minutes. Counter this with the six from Palace, three of which were in the space of 10 seconds that forced Jack Butland into a wonderful triple save, Stoke failed to do enough to impose themselves on the game and demand a result. The ability to create goals is too infrequent, with three coming against Liverpool, yet none against Palace. The job of the coaching staff within the next week has to be finding some consistency, especially away from home where there are far 'easier' teams to play in the second half of the season (Sunderland, Southampton, Norwich, Aston Villa etc) compared to those who travel to the Britannia (Manchester United, Arsenal, Newcastle, Tottenham etc).Oussama Assaidi had a game to forget with his stray pass causing the only goal of the game, yet Marc Wilson will not be feeling pride in his performance after being sluggish to react to Assaidi's loose ball. If these mistakes can be cut out of Stoke's game, then the team has a chance of getting a point out of hard fixtures when a mistake at the back will offer the opposition the chance to take all three points in victory. Simple things such as improving concentration off the ball, improving reaction speeds can only help the team and I can only assume the coaching staff have enough in their lockers to work on this sooner rather than later.

Away from the Brit - Orange Cards:

Jerome Champagne has some radical ideas for the future of football

The introduction of orange cards to football would signal the end of the current state of the sport and the beginning of an evolution that at present is hard to chart where it could end. But it would be a start, of something that like Pandora's box would be hard to stop. Whilst I am an advocate for technology to assist referees make a correct decision, changing the laws of the game is another matter. Jerome Champagne has suggested that if he is elected FIFA president after Sepp Blatter, he will put forward a proposition to introduce orange cards into the sport for decisions deemed between a yellow and red card, with the punishment on the pitch following on from rugby and seeing sin-bins introduced. In principle, this is not a terrible idea. It is what it could lead to that should strike fear into the powers that be. If this works, then what happens if someone in the future decides that there should be an introduction of a green card that results in a player having to run the lap of the pitch for every foul they commit - Robert Huth would be the fittest player in the league with his uncompromising nature when tackling! Whilst I respect that Champagne wants to have a positive influence on the game, I feel that if he starts introducing new laws and interfering with the game we all know, the enjoyment of the game could dwindle fast. After all, what would Denis Smith and Alan Bloor think of receiving an orange card?

Quick Snippet - Pennant Problem?

Pennant likely to leave the Brit in the immediate future

Whilst his tackle against Leon Osman a few weeks ago was bad enough for most Stoke supporters to deem the player surplus to requirements, 'Twitter news' that Stoke are to release Jermaine Pennant within the coming days came as a surprise. As one of the group of supporters that did not want Pennant to remain at the club after the Tony Pulis era, I cannot say in full honesty that I am sorry to see him leave. All that needs to be said is that we will always have the FA Cup season. Players like Rory Delap, Danny Higginbotham and Dean Whitehead, who have the left the club in recent seasons because the time was right deserve far more respect than Pennant, in my opinion. For this reason, I say farewell and goodbye if the rumours follow through with an official confirmation in the coming days.

Same Hardware, Different Software

Charlie Adam has become a regular source of goals in recent weeks

I would challenge the most ardent and optimistic of Stoke City supporters to admit that they predicted eight goals would have been scored at the Britannia Stadium on Sunday, 12th January, 2014. The team has shown in fits and starts that they are capable of taking a game to the opposition, but this trait was lost for the majority of the game against now-fourth placed Liverpool. What it was replaced by was a desire to stay in the game, which became most evident with Stoke's last goal, showing a fire in the players and supporters alike that Stoke City is not a team that will go down without a fight. Teams of the past have sometimes been guilty of lowering their heads in preparation of the inevitable onslaught to come. At 2-0 down due to an unfortunate own goal and poor defending from Ryan Shawcross and Marc Wilson, it would have been no surprise to see the pattern of holding on for dear life to maintain.

Peter Crouch has now scored four league goals in eighteen games

What appeared surprising regarding the comeback was not that it happened, but who instigated it. Marko Arnautovic, who had been having a poor game up until this point, floated a cross into the box, where Peter Crouch could just place enough power, pace and accuracy on it to deceive Simon Mignolet and get Stoke back into the game. Critics of Crouch would state that four goals from eighteen games is a poor return, but it can be argued that he is scoring more goals than he did at his previous club, Tottenham Hotspur. In his two seasons at Spurs he scored 8 and 4 league goals from 38 and 34 appearances. In his first two seasons at Stoke he scored 10 and 7 league goals from 32 and 34 appearances. In both of his seasons at Stoke he has improved on his seasons at Spurs. Whilst the lack of goals in general is still a concern, perhaps Crouch is not all to blame for not being able to put the onion in the bag.

Wilson committing a 'Spanish foul' against Sterling, conceding a penalty

Perhaps refereeing injustices are to blame. Anthony Taylor admitted after the match that he felt that Raheem Sterling had conned him into giving a penalty to Liverpool, whilst Martin Atkinson has in recent weeks placed a target on his head should he enter the Potteries in the forthcoming weeks for his poor display at Newcastle. Whilst the referees have been poor though, perhaps the players response at times to these decisions have not been the best. At times after the penalty to Liverpool, Stoke were all over the place defensively, going into fouls with a bit of blood and thunder rather than due to necessity. Ryan Shawcross conceded a foul shortly after the penalty which I felt needed to be given just to get Ryan's head back on the game. He had by this point conceded an own goal, been at fault for not clearing a bad back-pass quick enough, and had seen a penalty go against his team. Of course he would be rattled. Whilst it didn't improve his game, perhaps being at fault for Liverpool's fourth goal as he was sucked into Daniel Sturridge's movements rather than tracking the run of Luis Suarez, Shawcross did not make any more silly decisions of note.

A consolation goal in the end for Stoke, from Jon Walters

Sandwiched between Liverpool's fourth and fifth was a scruffy finish from Jonathan Walters, a goal he was fortunate to get regarding the finish, but one he deserved due to the criticism he sometimes receives. It is not hard to understand why he receives it regarding his goal tally, with only 2 goals in all competitions this season. His supporters might argue that he plays like former Liverpool player Dirk Kuyt, working tirelessly all over the pitch at perhaps his own detriment, yet if you tell him to stay in position up front, he can score you goals. His deployment on the wing this season, plus Mark Hughes decision not to refer to him when discussing his striking options, suggests that Walters has been told to worry less about his goal output and perhaps more on his defensive duties. Against Liverpool I think he had a bad game in this respect, which is where I am glad that he got his goal, meaning that even if he failed with his main objective, he still contributed to the game. Geoff Cameron's runs forward this season have created more work for Jon Walters as he has to create the right balance between attack and defence. If he is ahead of Geoff in an attack, he makes a run to support it. If he is behind him, he drops into the space that has been left by Cameron's run. By and large this season I feel that Walters has done his job in supporting Cameron, but in this game I feel Mark Hughes was perhaps at fault in playing him against Aly Cissokho. A new-comer still to the Premier League, perhaps unleashing Arnautovic and Cameron on him, whilst placing Walters on the opposite wing to track Glen Johnson may have been a more prudent option. Overall, the decision matters little as Liverpool were in control for large parts of the game, especially in the second half when two goals ahead. Sturridge's goal to make the score 3-5 made the game comfortable for them again and despite a few set-pieces causing problems, they saw the game out. Based on this performance, I would still argue that they are worthy of a top-four place, perhaps even a top-two position, on the condition that the luck that they received in this game remains for the rest of the season. Rarely will a team play Stoke and score five goals, let alone four goals which were from poor defensive decisions or plain bad luck. The priority for Stoke now, to maintain their push for the top ten rather than the bottom three is to get three points this weekend. No problem, right?

Weekend Preview - Crystal Pulis:

Tony Pulis has a 40% win rate at Crystal Palace so far

Twelve months ago, I would have predicted this fixture to be in Stoke's list for the season. At a time we looked to either be on course for relegation or Palace looked on course for promotion. It seemed likely our paths would cross. What I failed to predict was that instead of it being the second battle of the season between Ian Holloway and Tony Pulis, it would be Tony Pulis's first match against Stoke City in the Premier League. Anyone who tries to avoid this elephant in the room is in for a tough time, because whatever your opinion of Tony Pulis's reign as manager at Stoke City, the facts are sound. They state that he was in charge during a promotion to the Premier League, where during five seasons they flirted with the top ten, had a run to a FA Cup Final, and reached the last sixteen in Europe, plus reached the quarter final of both domestic cups multiple times. The last two seasons were unfortunate for Tony, and as a result for Stoke, where a lack of goals heaped the pressure onto Pulis before his eventual dismissal this summer.

Marouane Chamakh has scored more regularly under
Tony Pulis than he did under Ian Holloway or Keith Millen

Eight months on and Tony Pulis is the enemy for the weekend. As it has been reported, both sides know the strengths and weaknesses of the other in certain areas. Stoke know the advantages and disadvantages of the system Tony Pulis uses, a static back four with two defensive midfielders. Likewise, Pulis knows the pros and cons of most about 85-90% of the current Stoke squad just from working with them and as such will know how to exploit and poor areas of play each player has. With on-loan Cameron Jerome and Marouane Chamakh leading the Palace front-line, they have struck up the type of partnership that Stoke fans may have hoped could have been formed with Crouch and Jerome. What they lack as a partnership is goals though, with Jerome only scoring one goal in fifteen appearances, whilst Chamakh has a better rate with 4 in 20 appearances. Dwight Gayle has chipped in with goals recently against Aston Villa and West Brom so do not rule out Gayle starting and trying to complete his own personal Midlands hat-trick. Despite being young and raw, I have been impressed with Gayle's touch for a goal. His overall game needs improving quite a bit, and perhaps Tony Pulis is not the best manager to improve him as a modern-day front-man, but at Palace he will get a good grounding and get chances to impress. Meanwhile, Palace are playing with inverted wingers Jason Puncheon and Yannick Bolasie providing the width in the team, with Miles Jedinak the mainstay in their midfield. When Stoke failed in the last few years, it was because their wingers were marked out of the game. This has to be the approach on Saturday, try to keep Puncheon and Bolasie quiet, and as a result keep Chamakh and possibly Gayle out of the game. If the defence does this, then against Danny Gabbidon and Damien Delaney, Stoke have a good chance of scoring goals. With Oussama Assaidi almost certain to return to the starting line-up, the question is who does he come in for? Whilst Marko Arnautovic created two of Stoke's three goals at the weekend, he would still only get a 6/10 for his performance that game. However, would a work-horse like Jonathan Walters be the best option to break down a stubborn defence such as the one that Palace will offer? I would be tempted to play Arnautovic and Assaidi on the wings from the start, and hope that one or both have the ability to unlock Palace's defence, and then bring on Walters if the game is tight and either full back needs better defensive support.

Away from the Brit - Theatre of Nightmares:

Wins have been hard to come by at Old Trafford this season
for the home team

After losses against Tottenham, Swansea and Sunderland, football supporters across the country will be wondering what has happened to Manchester United, if not be unduly concerned about their implosion. The simple explanation is that Sir Alex Ferguson has gone. He was the man that got the extra 20-30% out of his team, whilst using psychological tricks such as tapping his watch to make oppositions fear playing his team. That fear factor has undoubtedly gone, but so has any sign of needing to fear Manchester United. What was once a fortress has now seen four home league losses - by comparison Stoke have only seen two home losses in the league. The weight of pressure on Manchester United players to attack and win at home is undoubtedly causing trouble as their away form is better, with only two losses in the league at Anfield and the Etihad stadium.

One win from four games is poor form for last season's champions

From the outside looking in, what I have noticed most weeks is that there have been vast changes to their line-up, with no consistency being able to form between the key players on the pitch. One game it is Vidic and Evans in defence, Carrick and Cleverley in midfield, then the next game it is Smalling and Vidic in defence with Giggs and Fletcher in the centre. How can players perform if they aren't getting a consistent run. Looking at who their best players have been in recent weeks, Adnan Januzaj's name has cropped up regularly, with the youngster proving to be United's source of inspiration with van Persie and Rooney out injured. The other that has played well is Danny Welbeck, with the feeling being that he is the first name on the team sheet at the moment. Welbeck's run in the team has taken his league goal tally up to 8 goals in the season, one short of his United best of 9. His goal tally has drawn criticism in recent years when connected to his England call-ups, but he is proving a point that when he is played as the focal point of an attack, he will get goals. As he showed against Swansea recently, he will also miss chances, but at 23 years of age, it is promising, for England at least, to see this marked improvement in his goal output this season. David de Gea is the only other United player who has been given a run of games and he has made a decent fist of keeping United in some of the games they have lost, with the clangers he dropped in his first season at United appearing to be a thing of the past. I would still argue that Asmir Begovic is better than him due to Begovic's far impressive physique and ability to collect the ball, but De Gea is impressing nevertheless at, again, 23 years of age. The argument I am making, which seems not to have been picked up by the media as much, is that Moyes should focus less on rotation, and more on consistency within the team. If he starts selecting a starting XI with more consistency down the spine, the results will pick up again. Looking at his time at Everton, it is unlikely he will fail to realise this eventually. His defence at Everton always had consistency, with Jagielka and Distin, and before them Jagielka and Lescott always been certain selections if fit. Moyes, given time, will realise this I suspect, but will it be too late for them to rescue their season?

Quick Snippet - John Guidetti

John Guidetti, 20 goals in 23 appearances in Holland

John Guidetti is an enigma at the moment. A player with such promise after such a good spell with Feyenoord that the only doubt supporters can have over him is whether he can cut it in the Premier League. Perhaps an unfair criticism. As has been mentioned in this post, Crouch has only scored four goals in the league this season, Walters with two and Jones has none. Guidetti, from the bench to begin with, may prove to be a worthwhile acquisition as he has pace, something all of the above lack, whilst he has a good scoring record elsewhere. The proof will be in the pudding, but hopefully a few substitute appearances will impress both management and supporters alike in the near future.

Starve the Scousers

Crouch started the festive period off well with a winner
against Aston Villa

Although it seems like little to no time has passed since the last match report, Stoke City have endured a mixed bag of results during the five matches across the festive period. Despite victories against Aston Villa and Leicester (in the FA Cup) being encouraging, losses to Newcastle and Tottenham, coupled by a harsh draw with Everton has left Potters fans puzzled as usual as to where they will stand come the end of the season. Some feel that the squad will not survive relegation if they do not strengthen; some feel that the squad is strong as it is and would survive, whilst others believe that with the right investment in January, the squad could target the top half of the table. In my recent Half Time Report, I stated that my belief is that despite results leaning towards a transitional period for the club, the players that we currently have will be capable of staving off relegation, but I also tipped the club for a top 10 finish. If it had not been for small flash-points in games: a missed penalty, a harsh red card, a strange substitution, an injury to an important player, Stoke could have been higher than they are right now. However, most clubs in the league would also believe their club could be higher in the league if they had seen a fairer share of luck.

Glenn Whelan receives a second yellow card against Newcastle
when common sense could have spared the midfielder

In the first game of the festive period against Aston Villa, Stoke were fortunate not to have had a man sent off when Marc Wilson was caught just outside the penalty area, the Irishman was fortunate at this time however. The same could not be said of Erik Pieters, my choice of new signing of the season so far, who had the misfortune of heading the ball back to Asmir Begovic, and not putting enough pace on the ball so that Libor Kozak could intervene and level the game. Come Boxing Day and more misfortune would come to the Stoke squad, before kick-off, with the news that Asmir Begovic would be unavailable for the next six weeks with a broken finger. Thomas Sorenson, whilst an able deputy and a worthy inclusion in Stoke's hall of fame, he did not instil confidence in supporters prior to kick-off. After the sendings off of Glenn Whelan and Marc Wilson, both harsh but understandable in the cold light of day, Sorenson showed his composure in saving the resulting penalty from Wilson's red, keeping up his reputation of being an excellent penalty goalkeeper. Sadly for Sorenson, instead of being awarded with a break in play when Mike Williamson should have been punished for a handball in Newcastle's half, Stoke were caught and conceded a bitter goal. What was to follow though was an onslaught, not helped by Martin Atkinson who failed to reward Stoke with any key decisions that could have stemmed the tide, the second goal for Newcastle coming from a ball into the box that should have been called out of play. Newcastle were professional in the end, but before the sending off, they were not magnificent.

Oussama Assaidi, Stoke's most consistent player over the festive period

The hang-over result at Tottenham was little surprise, yet Stoke did not help themselves in this game by conceding their third penalty in two games. With Roberto Soldado scoring to put Spurs in front, it seemed impossible for Stoke to get back into this game. As it proved to be with the main highlight of this game proving not to be the further two goals from Moussa Dembele or Aaron Lennon, but the Charlie Adam tackle on Paulinho that Tottenham described as 'hard', continuing their vendetta against Adam. It cannot be denied that Charlie Adam is not a good tackler. I have pushed for Mark Hughes to drop Adam at times this season due to this poor attribute, with his inability to tackle correctly causing troubles at key points during the season. This tackle though that Spurs have highlighted was no worse than some that Adam has committed this season, it is just the aftermath that is disappointing with Paulinho facing a spell on the sidelines. This is not a defence of Adam as a midfielder hardman, but as a person, stating that whilst he has committed poor tackles against Spurs players in the past, Adam has merely been unfortunate to have been the player to commit to these fouls against this one team. One player who has been fortunate though in recent weeks has been Oussama Assaidi who has been rewarded for his goal against Chelsea with consecutive starts against Hull City, Manchester United, Aston Villa, Newcastle, Tottenham, Everton and Leicester. This run will come to an end with Liverpool coming to the Britannia Stadium this weekend but Assaidi should feel proud of his recent performances. Reports of moves in the summer to Lazio or Florentina seem a bit premature based on a month's good form, but for the sake of the player I hope he continues to impress until May at the very least. His goals against Chelsea, Newcastle and Everton have shown that he does not shy himself away when a tough shot is on the cards, commonly roaming at the far post in the box so that he can pick up loose crosses and try to cause trouble by cutting inside with his right foot. His pace has also given Stoke a new outlet whilst Marko Arnautovic remains out of form, offering Stoke an option that other starting players do not possess.

Marko Arnautovic, a player looking as if he is playing through injury

Arnautovic's performances of late have been unimpressive, perhaps of a player who is recovering from an injury and needs time to regain top form. Sitting on the bench will not help him in this situation so it is good for him that he started the game against Leicester in the FA Cup, ahead of hopefully ninety minutes against Liverpool at the weekend. If he performs well against Liverpool, I would hope that he could retain his place in the side, even at the expense of Jonathan Walters as he and Assaidi both offer trickery and pose more questions for defences. Whilst I am a fan of Walters, he is a blunt instrument, reliable in his defensive duties, but a battering ram in his offensive ventures. Against a very tough Crystal Palace in two weeks' time, having two adventurous forwards will hopefully have the effect of unlocking a cast-iron door rather than trying to knock it down with a wooden log.

Talking Tactics - Stoke City vs Liverpool:

I would make only a few changes for the visit of Liverpool, one enforced with the ineligibility of Oussama Assaidi. Marko Arnautovic is the natural replacement for Assaidi, with a good game due from the Austrian in the red and white stripes. Jack Butland is in the team on the basis that Thomas Sorenson remains injured for the fixture, although if he recovers in time I would expect him to return to the starting line-up despite Butland's good performances against Everton and Leicester. The only other change from the Everton game that I would like to see is Stephen Ireland coming in for Charlie Adam, who in fairness has played well in recent games, but he is always a bad challenge away from trouble. If Adam plays, I will have no concerns, until that first bad tackle, and then I suspect all Stoke supporters will be on edge. Ireland offers some security that he will put in a steady performance in all areas, even if he does not wow the paying customers. For that reason he would get in my team for this game.

Stoke's major concern should be how to defend against Liverpool, and in particular how to stop Luis Suarez. Across the Christmas period he showed that he can be stopped, with Vincent Kompany and John Terry keeping him in their pockets for the two big games Liverpool played in that period. If Ryan Shawcross still has aspirations of being an England international, he needs to put in a good performance against Suarez, keeping tight to him, but not too tight that he can make him look like a fool. The likely return of Steven Gerrard to Liverpool's starting line-up may not help the club for once, with Jordan Henderson playing well during the festive period just behind Suarez. It would also be unfair if one of Lucas or Joe Allen were to be replaced due to the return of Gerrard so the return of their captain may not necessarily be a good thing. The key thing the Stoke team will have to watch out for tactically will be the shape of Brendan Rodgers's team, with the return of Daniel Sturridge offering Liverpool the option of playing with a back four or a back three/five. I would suspect that they will start the game with a back four, hoping that Suarez alone up front will be enough to break Stoke down, but if the Potters take the lead, or Liverpool do not look like scoring early in the second half, do not be surprised to see a tactical change. Stoke historically in the Premier League do not play well against teams who play with three at the back so this is something that will need to change, hopefully by exploiting any gaps the team sees out wide to double up on Liverpool's wing-backs.

Quick Snippet - Thomas Hitzlsperger:

Thomas Hitzlsperger announced his sexuality this week after retiring
from football at the end of last season.

It was a surprise to hear about Thomas Hitzlsperger announcing his sexuality this week, but only because you wonder why it is such a hot topic in football still. Are dressing room atmospheres that toxic regarding homosexuality? Hitzlsperger in his statement mentioned that he would not join in banter if it crossed a line regarding sexuality, but the question should be asked why does it need to go that far? Football players are all human beings and that is something that can be easily forgotten with 3D models readily available on games consoles in the present day. If a player denies something that is important about himself though, it can only affect his career in the long-run. I could only imagine that it would require extra concerns over privacy, making sure that nothing gets leaked to the press regarding who he sleeps with, all to the detriment of the player's career. In the long-run, footballers should be braver and not be afraid to say who they are. The trouble is, it will take a brave person to make this first move whilst they're still playing. Because whilst Hitzlsperger is a high-profile player, he is still no out of the limelight.