Ahead of QPR’s trip to Stoke City on Saturday, their twelfth attempt to register an away win this season, Potters fan John Mothershaw returns to LFW with his opinions on the home side.
Assess Stoke's season for us so far...
JM: The season got off to mixed start. We lost some poor home games against Aston Villa, Leicester and Burnley yet won away at Man City. As the season has gone on though results and performances have improved. We look more consistent and settled as a team now. Been something of a role reversal as we have lost four home games already which would have been unthinkable at this stage in previous seasons yet we have won four away games which is also unprecedented.
How has Meticulous Mark Hughes done since he arrived at the club? What has he done well, and what has he done poorly (we'll see if we recognise any of the latter)?
JM: I think most Stoke fans have nothing but praise for Mark Hughes since he has arrived. He wasn't most fans’ first choice when he took over before last season and it perhaps took a little while to see exactly what he was trying to do but he has transformed the way that we play. He has done it gradually, but we now have the strong spine of the team we always had previously but now with added flair. The most remarkable thing about Hughes so far is how little he has spent yet still bought in quality players. (Jesus — ed)
Who are the stand out performers and weak links in the current side?
JM: The key performer has undoubtedly been Bojan. He has been a breath of fresh air. His technical ability is outstanding, he ghosts past players like they are not there and seems to have so much time on the ball. He is not the only inform player we have though Steven Nzonzi has looked a far better player this term, especially when he ventures forward, and the only thing missing from his game is more goals. Jon Walters looks revitalised. In the last few weeks Marko Arnautovic has started to produce last season’s form. Ryan Shawcross and Marc Muniesa have also been outstanding at the back. The area of concern for me is the right back position. I think most fans are unconvinced with either Geoff Cameron or Phil Bardsley.
Bojan started quietly, seems to be hitting his straps now - where do Stoke use him, has his position changed, why did it take him a little while to come good?
JM: Bojan did take a little while to settle but that was to be expected and in comparison to other players maybe he didn’t take that long. He plays generally behind the main striker (Diouf or Crouch usually ), but seems to have a free role and is given licence to roam, he is a great link between midfield and the forward line and also likes to drift into wide positions so he can cut inside. As well as all the technical stuff it must be mentioned his work rate is up there with any other player in the team. If he loses the ball he is like a dog with a bone trying to get it back. He is an individual talent but very much a team player.
Any potential comings and goings in January? Who's been linked and what would you like to see happen?
JM: We have already made one signing: Philipp Wollscheid who is a German international central defender on loan from Bayer Leverkusan. Winger Oussama Assaidi has left the club after Liverpool recalled him from his loan so he could be sold to Al Ahli in the UAE so a replacement for him may well be on the cards. Mark Hughes has a bit of a track record since arriving at Stoke of pulling a rabbit out of the hat with a sudden signing, so who knows. Another striker would be welcome.
Stoke are surely settled enough at this level now to have greater aspirations than simply surviving each year aren't they? Do you envisage cups or another European run in the short or medium term?
JM: We are now an established Premier League club with a very good squad so yes relegation is no longer a real threat. It's the first season personally where at the start of it I had absolutely no fears of relegation. It is, however, still a relief when you go passed the 40 point mark which hopefully won't be long this season. How far can we go? It's hard to envisage us breaking into the top four or five clubs in the country but we are becoming one of the best of the rest. So a top six or seven is not impossible if we have a similar end to the season as last year. A top ten place again though would be more than satisfactory.
I write this before the Rochdale FA cup tie so hopefully we have avoided a banana skin and are safely into the fifth round. It was wonderful to get to the FA cup final in 2011 and would be a dream come true to go back to Wembley again. Hull, Wigan and ourselves have proved in recent years it's possible to go all the way. Europe was a reward for our cup run and was a superb experience that Stoke fans would love to taste again.
The Twitter @pottersjohn
Pictures — Action Images