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Stoke City vs Sheffield Wednesday preview: 3 players to watch

By Matt Bernstein

SHEFFIELD, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 22: Dominic Iorfa of Sheffield Wednesday tackles Scott Hogan of Stoke City during the Sky Bet Championship match between Sheffield Wednesday and Stoke City at Hillsborough Stadium on October 22, 2019 in Sheffield, England. (Photo by George Wood/Getty Images)
SHEFFIELD, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 22: Dominic Iorfa of Sheffield Wednesday tackles Scott Hogan of Stoke City during the Sky Bet Championship match between Sheffield Wednesday and Stoke City at Hillsborough Stadium on October 22, 2019 in Sheffield, England. (Photo by George Wood/Getty Images) /
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Steven Fletcher
STOKE ON TRENT, ENGLAND – JANUARY 22: Steven Fletcher of Stoke scores their first goal during the Sky Bet Championship match between Stoke City and Watford at Bet365 Stadium on January 22, 2021 in Stoke on Trent, England. Sporting stadiums around the UK remain under strict restrictions due to the Coronavirus Pandemic as Government social distancing laws prohibit fans inside venues resulting in games being played behind closed doors. (Photo by Nathan Stirk/Getty Images) /

Steven Fletcher needs to start filling the net for Stoke City

Not signing a striker in January was a big decision, and one that is still not popular among Stoke fans. Michael O’Neill cited having forward options in Jacob Brown, Sam Vokes, and Steven Fletcher all available so their is little need. The only problem with this is that outside of Fletcher, this group hasn’t shown they can be relied upon to score. Fletcher is Stoke’s best option as he’s scored 6 in 17 starts this season and has the highest goals/90 rating in 0.4 of any player other than Tyrese Campbell.

Going up against Sheffield Wednesday, Stoke need Fletcher to get hot. He’s been held scoreless in his last 2 matches and has also just had one shot or target. It’s a tricky situation for Stoke as Fletcher is clearly their best option and they only want to go with Brown or Vokes for injury or if they are already out of the match, as was the case on Saturday against Norwich.

Fletcher would easily have a few more scores this season if not for some offside calls. He leads the team with 16 on the year and has rarely gotten the benefit of close calls.

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