Stoke City

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Stoke City signed Michael Rose on a free transfer from Coventry City last summer, and he's been a regular feature of the first team ever since, playing more minutes, external than any of his teammates this season.

The Potters defender has admitted that he's content with his time at the club so far, but insists that his only aim is to retain the team's status in the Championship:

"It's been pretty mad to be honest. Difficult as well because I've never experienced managers getting sacked and a lot of change happening. This is the first time I've had it in a season.

"I'm sure I'll learn a lot from it and build on it for next season. I've played a lot of games so I'm happy in that regard personally, but my focus is now on the weekend and just making sure that this club stays up."

Ahead of Saturday's meeting with Plymouth Argyle, Rose added that the squad aren't phased by the fact that they are playing Steven Schumacher's former side:

"For the players, it's probably a little bit different because we don't have as much emotion to the game as the gaffer or as Plymouth, so for us, it's just a game that we have to focus on ourselves. Go and attack the game and try and win it."

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Ahead of Stoke City's game vs Plymouth Argyle, BBC Radio Stoke spoke to opposition fan Joe Bell from the 'Green and White, external' podcast to preview the reunion between Steven Schumacher and his former club.

"There's going to be a real spice to it. You can't play it down. It's important that our players strip away the emotion because they could easily get carried away trying to get one over on the previous boss.

"You always want to impress somebody who's let you down and that's the feeling that was amongst the dressing room at the time."

When asked which of his players could pose the biggest threat this weekend, he said:

"Morgan Whittaker. The bloke's a genius. So many assists, so many goals, creative player. He's the one to keep an eye on."

Delivering his score prediction, Bell added:

"I think it's a more important game for Stoke than us with you playing Southampton afterwards, whereas we've got Millwall.

"It'll be a tight affair. We'll be trying our hardest to get the win. I do have green tinted glasses on so I'm going to say we're going to nick it 2-1 when it looks set for a 1-1 draw."

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Former Stoke City defender Mike Pejic believes that Steven Schumacher needs to find more consistency in his team selection moving forward.

The Potters head coach has shown that he's not afraid to make changes to his starting line-up, but the veteran is adamant that it's not helping performances or results:

"Something is just not quite clicking and it may be because of constant change. You've got to have a settled team to get the best out of your players and cover up the weaknesses.

"You're not going to do that with constant change so you have to look at yourself as a coach. 'Am I doing the right thing?'

"You should always be doing that even when you're winning. You're still looking to get better.

"It's a big ask now having drawn three and lost one in the last four games, but we're fortunate to have Plymouth at home on Saturday."

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Potters midfielder Bae Junho has impressed during his debut season at the club after joining from South Korean side Daejeon Hana Citizen last summer.

Speaking to BBC Radio Stoke, George Weaver from 'Potterlytics, external' named the 20-year-old as the one player who could most help avoid relegation to League One:

"In terms of that calmness on the ball and being able to play through teams, he really does bring an extra dimension to that midfield. Being able to receive it in those half spaces and be able to play off to other people.

"We saw his little dummy on Saturday that let Campbell set up the Cundle goal. Just a little bit of that in a game, even when you're not on top, can really turn things around."

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Stoke City's U21's were beaten 3-0 by Leicester City in the Premier League 2 at the Seagrave training ground on Monday.

The Foxes went 2-0 up inside ten minutes with a brace from Oliver James Ewing, before Logan Briggs added a late third to secure all three points.

Lead coach Ryan Shawcross named Junior Tchamadeu in his starting line-up, with the defender stepping up his recovery from injury by playing 45 minutes.

The Potters face Newcastle United at the Bet365 Stadium on 26 April in their last fixture of the season where they could qualify for the elimination play-offs.

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Stoke City's Michael Rose knows that the club's Championship fate is in their own hands and that the players need to make sure relegation is avoided.

The Potters take on Plymouth Argyle on Saturday in a game both teams need to win in order to give themselves the best chance of staying up.

Speaking ahead of the match, defender Rose says there can't be any excuses:

"We've got ourselves in this situation so we've got to stand up and get ourselves out of it. We can't look to anyone else apart from ourselves as players. Especially this game this weekend. We owe it to everyone to go in and put on a performance and get the three points that we need."

This weekend's fixture has more than just relegation at stake, as it will be the first time that head coach Steven Schumacher will face his former club since his switch from the South West at the end of 2023.

Another factor that could swing things in Stoke's favour is the Bet365 Stadium crowd. Rose added that the team needs to take advantage of the passionate home support:

"I think it was the Middlesbrough game when the crowd were like that. When it's like that it's a really good place to play football so we need that again at the weekend."

Stoke City are reportedly preparing a move to sign Burnley striker Jay Rodriguez in the summer transfer window.

The Clarets forward will be out of contract at the end of the season, and having not been offered a new deal, he is set to leave and become a free agent.

The Potters are expected to lose Tyrese Campbell and Wesley when their terms expire in June, with the club highlighting the 34-year-old as a possible replacement.

(TEAMtalk, external)

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Stoke City playmaker Bae Junho has been replaced in the South Korea squad for the U23's Asian Cup which starts this week.

The Potters midfielder had initially been chosen to compete in Qatar, but the club have decided to keep hold of him so that he'll be available to take part in the last three games of the season.

Hwang Sun-Hong's side could qualify for the Paris Olympics should they be successful in this tournament, but they will have to try and do so without Junho.

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Potters midfielder Luke Cundle scored his first goal for the club over the weekend in the 1-1 draw with Sheffield Wednesday.

Expressing his delight to get off the mark, the 21-year-old told the club website:

"I got played through. I was looking for the square ball. I think it was Million at the back post, but the goal was there, it fell nicely to my foot and I thought I'd put it in. It was a great feeling.

"I'm not going to lie, it's been tough for me so far, but I'm glad I could get that in. It was an important goal for us and hopefully it's a big point come the end of the season."

When asked how much the fans helped to get the result over the line, Cundle added:

"Magnificent support. They stayed with us, especially when we were one nil down. They could have easily turned against us, but it helps the lads a lot when you've got the voice on the pitch to keep pushing us to the final whistle."

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Stoke City earned a 1-1 draw against Sheffield Wednesday on Saturday, coming behind from a goal down to take a point at Hillsborough.

Speaking to BBC Radio Stoke's Sohail Sahi during his post-match interview, Steven Schumacher praised the belief of his side to find the equaliser:

"In the first half, we had to come under intense pressure, but thankfully we stood up to it. We spoke about what we could do better at half time, get a bit more pressure on the ball higher up the pitch which we did.

"Second half, we were better. Probably unfortunate to go behind when we did. I thought the game was quite even then, but we showed a brilliant response. Changed our shape, went for a bit more attacking.

"We expected Sheffield Wednesday to tire. Spaces opened up and the creative players caused them a problem.

"In the end, a really good goal from Cundle, but we maybe could have nicked it because he blocked one from going in off Junho.

"It's still a good result. It would have been brilliant if we'd have got a win, but also, we could have lost the game at the very end.

"Josh Laurent makes a goal-line clearance which was as good as a goal, so we take it on the chin and move on."

You can listen to the full interview here.

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Ahead of Stoke City's upcoming away game vs Sheffield Wednesday, Steven Schumacher has been speaking to the media at his pre-match press conference.

The Potters head coach has previewed this weekend's opponents, whether his side can beat the drop and how important it's going to be to put on a performance for the 4,000 fans who are making the trip to South Yorkshire.

The Owls: "Going to Hillsborough is always hard, no matter what situation they are in. They had a good result in midweek. We expect them to play with confidence and momentum, so we need to make sure we are ready for it. We can't start the game slow, we need to get on the front foot and try and make it a difficult day for them."

Relegation battle: "It's probably going to go to the wire. We need to just focus on ourselves. Try and get the results and points where we can and if we do have a bad result, quickly move on. Understand what we did wrong in that game and then do something about it."

Support of fans: "It's massive. The fans who travelled on Wednesday night were brilliant. We felt that our performance wasn't good enough and we almost let them down, so we need to put that right. Can't perform like that again because with 4,000 fans going there, we need to make sure that they can see we are up for the fight."

With Stoke City preparing to face Sheffield Wednesday on Saturday, we asked you to send in your score predictions and thoughts as to how you think the game could pan out.

Here are some of the responses we received:

KL: Stoke will want to remedy a poor Wednesday performance. When they play aggressively from the first whistle they can match most teams, but too often they play a negative game, holding up and playing square or more likely backwards. Defending is frequently mired by poor vision and individual errors. Stoke win 1-2.

SD: We have a mix of young players with potential, alongside trouble making journeymen. If we repeat the shameful performance vs Swansea (bearing in mind Sheff Wed battled back from two down for a point vs Norwich), we’ll get beaten by 3/4. Shameful to be honest, sums up our 2023/24 season perfectly.

Adrian: All decided in the next two games. Win both we are totally safe, draw both we are most likely safe. Lose one and only draw the other, or lose both, and we will be twitching at the Bet365 against Bristol City. Frankly the nails can't stand any more biting!

Rob: We seem to play worse against teams around us. I'm going for 2-1 to Wednesday. We'll then draw against Plymouth, beat Southampton and draw with Bristol City on the last day and stay up on goal difference.

Pete: It's in the bag. 3-1.

Jacob: 4-3 Stoke.

• Stoke City have failed to win any of their last five Championship away games against Sheffield Wednesday (D4 L1) since a 2-0 victory in November 2005.

• The Owls are aiming to complete a league double over the Potters for the first time since the 1952/53 season after recording a 1-0 away win in December.

• Steven Schumacher's side have won two of their last three second tier away matches in Yorkshire (L1), as many as they had in their previous 14 games in Yorkshire combined (W2 D7 L5).

• The Hillsborough Stadium outfit have lost just one of their last seven home league fixtures (W3 D3), losing 2-0 in a Yorkshire derby against Leeds United.

• Will Vaulks came off the bench to assist two goals for Sheffield Wednesday in their 2-2 draw with Norwich City in midweek – he only had two assists in his previous 51 Championship games combined.

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Stoke City's U18's were beaten 1-0 by Leeds United in the U18's Premier League North on Wednesday afternoon.

The Whites went ahead just after half an hour through Devon Brockie who took one touch before rolling the ball into the bottom corner.

Potters forward Luke Enright hit the woodwork from range in the second half before seeing a point-blank strike saved by goalkeeper Rory Mahady.

Following defeat at Thorp Arch, Dave Hibbert's side now find themselves 11th in the table out of 13 teams, while their opponents are sixth.

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After Wednesday night's 3-0 loss at Swansea City, Stoke City fans are feeling less optimistic about their Championship survival.

Steven Schumacher's side go to third from bottom Sheffield Wednesday on Saturday with only three points separating the two teams.

Following the defeat in South Wales, this is what Stoke fans posted on X (formerly Twitter):

Stavross - Awful performance from all the Stoke players, ref was terrible, poor team set up. Now we are right back in it. Saturday is huge.

Michael - This is about pure desire to win. Swansea had it, Stoke didn’t. End of.

Ade - Let's hope we put in a better performance this weekend. That last night wasn't the "Cup final" performance that was promised. More like a Sunday morning kickabout after a night on the ale.

Andy - You haven’t learned from your mistakes all season. No pride, no passion, no self-belief whatsoever, a shambles of a team. You should all hang your heads in shame.

Katie - Hate to say it but Schuey got it all wrong this time. Poor starting line-up, poor subs and they just seemed scared. Why isn't Baker starting, he's the best holding midfielder we've got?! Terrible game. Terrible performance.

Do you agree and what are your thoughts on Stoke City's survival chances?

Let us know your thoughts here.

Stoke City travel to Hillsborough on Saturday to play Sheffield Wednesday as they aim to take all three points at the home of their relegation-battling rivals.

The Potters lost 3-0 to Swansea City in their last game, but can they turn their form back around with a win this weekend to lift them further away from the drop zone?

Get involved by sending us your score predictions and thoughts ahead of the match using the online form below.

Have your say here!

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Stoke City have proposed plans to create a new footpath for away fans at the Bet365 Stadium ahead of the 2024/25 season.

The Potters are moving visiting supporters to the south-east corner from next term onwards and have requested planning permission to make a walkway between the away coach car park and the current path from Stanley Matthews Way.

The club are also wanting to build a two-metre high fence to keep both sets of fans segregated, alongside installing four CCTV columns.

A separate application has been submitted to the council to extend the size of the players' car park which, if approved, should create 20 more spaces.

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Stoke City goalkeeper Daniel Iversen is on loan with the club until the end of the season, but he's already made it clear that he wants to seal a permanent exit from Leicester City.

We recently asked whether you would like to sign the 26-year-old for good in the summer, and here are some of the responses that we received:

Steve: Whatever happened to our commanding goalkeepers? Banks and Begovic took charge of their six-yard boxes. They shouted out orders. We, as fans, felt confident that our defence was sound. We need someone of that calibre once more.

Andrew: I would like Iversen to stay at Stoke and become the number one. Another great Dane between the sticks.

Gary: Sign the guy up, he is a good keeper.

This is what some Foxes fans had to say:

John: Leicester fan here. I really like Iversen but he has no chance of making the Leicester side while Maresca is there. He wants footballing goalkeepers and Daniel simply does not fit the bill. His wages may be a problem for some Championship clubs like Stoke. Also, Leicester are keen to sell and not give away players due to their financial predicament.

Reuben: He's a good keeper, but we've got Hermansen and Jakub. Iversen is too good to be wasted as a third choice keeper, so sadly, he'll be going.

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The Potters were beaten 3-0 by Swansea City in the Championship on Wednesday, with goals coming from Liam Cullen, Matt Grimes and Joshua Key in South Wales.

Speaking to BBC Radio Stoke's Sohail Sahi during his post-match interview, Steven Schumacher reflected on what was a disappointing display from his team:

"It was a bad night. We didn't play well, can't hide behind that fact. We didn't win enough little battles, enough duels. Swansea were stronger than us in that area of the pitch and they also passed the ball better.

"I don't think we created enough. We weren't accurate with our passing and that's down to Swansea as well being as aggressive as they were without the ball.

"It wasn't a good night, but that can happen and we have to see that as a blip in our performance. Of late, performances have been good, so understand what we haven't done well, but not get carried away either."

You can listen to the full interview with the head coach here.

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Ahead of Wednesday night's game vs Swansea City, BBC Radio Stoke's Lucas Yeomans has been speaking to opposition fan and co-host of 'The JackCast, external' Steven Carroll to discuss which of his team's players could pose the biggest threat in South Wales.

"Probably Ronald, our Brazilian right winger. He came in January, brought some much-needed pace to the side.

"Up front, we've struggled for goals all season so I don't know who's going to get the nod there. Jerry Yates played the other day but he was quite poor.

"The other threat for us has mainly been Jamie Paterson, but he hasn't been so good the last few weeks so Ronald is the one to look for."

When asked for his score prediction, he added:

"Our record against Stoke isn't very good. I remember we did have a double during lockdown which says it all. Usually we don't tend to fend too well against Stoke so I'm going to sit on the fence. 1-1."

• None of the last nine Championship meetings between Swansea City and Stoke City at the Swansea.com Stadium have ended level, since a 3-3 draw in 2013 (4 Swansea wins, 5 Stoke wins).

• The Potters are unbeaten in their previous five league games against the Swans, with their three victories in that time all seeing them score exactly three times (D2).

• Since Luke Williams’ first Championship home game in January, no side has lost more matches on their own turf in the competition than tonight's hosts (P7 W2 L5).

• After winning just two of their opening seven away league fixtures under Steven Schumacher (D1 L4), the red and whites have won each of their last two such games, and could win three in a row for the first time since December 2005 (run of four).

• Four of Stoke’s last eight goals away from home in the Championship have been from set pieces (2x free kick, 1x direct free kick, 1x corner).