Match Preview – Brighton v Stoke City

Stoke – the club
Stoke City won promotion to the Premier League in 2008 and were instantly written off due to their unfashionable squad and having a manager who looked like he was advertising the advantages of being on benefits. Tony Pulis has of course defied all expectations since then by becoming one of the safest pair of hands in the top flight, while Stoke have never been embroiled in a relegation battle in the subsequent nine seasons. That has been in part due to turning the Bet365 Stadium into a fortress to the point where the phrase “Yeah, but could he do it on a wet Tuesday night in Stoke?” is a litmus test of whether a great player is actually a world class player. The other reason for their success is stability – they’ve been shrewd in the transfer market and had only two managers – Pulis and current incumbent Mark Hughes – in over 10 years.

Stoke – the place
Stoke is the home of Britain’s pottery trade which has led to the area becoming known as the Potteries. It became a city in 1925 on the say-so of King George V who was a big fan of Wedgwood. Alton Towers is only 10 miles east of Stoke, meaning you don’t have to go out on a limb to get to Britain’s best theme park from the city.

Stoke – the people
Obviously, famous Potters (not Lily, James and Harry) top the list of local celebrities with Josiah Wedgwood, John Aynsley, Josiah Wedgwood II, William Moorcroft and Roberto Wedgwood III the big names. Away from plates and tea cups, Stoke also gave the world darts great Phil the Power Taylor and Angels crooner Robbie Williams, who supports the cities other side, Port Vale.

A good WeAreBrighton.com memory of Stoke at home
Our record against Stoke is absolutely atrocious, with just three wins in our last 29 meetings. One of those was a Tuesday night at Withdean in the 2001/02 season, a classic backs to the walls performance with some typical Michel Kuipers heroics and a last minute goal from Paul Watson to win 1-0.

A bad WeAreBrighton.com memory of Stoke at home
The last time we played Stoke in a league game was the final day of the 2005-06 season. Mark McGhee’s side were already relegated from the Championship and they certainly played as if it were a game that didn’t matter, losing 5-1. The abjectness of the performance was such that the Withdean South Stand actually celebrated Stoke’s fourth and fifth goals, while the visiting Potters fans did the same for Doug Loft’s consolation. Adam Rooney looked like a world beater, notching a hat-trick for the visitors leading to chants of “Rooooooooonnneeeyyyyyyy” from around the ground when he was subbed, and he certainly lived up to that billing by going onto play for, er, Aberdeen and Inverness Caledonian Thistle.

Played for both?
One thing Brighton fans do better than most is decree a new signing as the best thing since sliced bread before the ink is dry on a contract. The tip of that particular iceberg was when Diego Arismendi arrived on loan from Stoke towards the end of the 2009-10 season, with some fans predicting he would be the best player in League One. If they meant best player in League One at being a total waste of wages and getting sent off for fighting, then they were spot on – his only notable contribution coming when he saw red in a bore 0-0 draw away at McDons.

Dangermen
Despite Stoke’s reputation for being less glamorous than a Friday night in Pryzm, they’ve managed to attract their fair share of big name players. Bojan may have departed last year, but they still have former Bayern Munich and Inter Milan star Xherdan Shaqiri Shaqiri, who I never really knew he could dance like this, he makes a man want to speak Spanish.

Betting
Given our terrible record against Stoke and the fact we’ve drawn our last two at home, take another stalemate at 11/5. Pascal Gross seems to safe his best games for after international breaks – see the 3-1 win over West Bromwich Albion and the draw with Everton – and some firms are finally pricing him up early in the anytime goalscorer market where he is currently 43/10.

You can say a full betting match preview for Brighton v Stoke on OLBG

Prediction
Another Amex 1-1 draw. The nation will be thrilled.