Extra Days To Prepare Welcomed by Stoke City
A few extra days for a football club to prepare for their next match is never a bad thing. But it’s even more useful when a club has some personnel in doubt for that said upcoming match — As Stoke City still remain without some key players on the pitch due to injury, and have a manager that has been battling to stay on the pitch.
Against Bristol City on Saturday, Stoke City were able to rally back from being a goal down to grab all three points. However, the club did it without right wing-back/fullback Dujon Sterling and forward Dwight Gayle who missed out on the match due to injury. Plus, to add to Stoke City’s concerns, manager Alex Neil was battling an illness in the dugout for the entire match.
Per assistant manager Martin Canning after the match on Saturday, Alex Neil who did manage the game against Bristol City, was battling an illness for most of the week going into Saturday — So much so that Canning addressed the media after the match instead of Neil.
The great news for The Potters though, is with the holiday weekend ahead, Stoke City will have an extra few days to prepare for Rotherham United. Because of the holiday this weekend, instead of playing on Saturday as usual, Stoke City will instead play on Monday —That extra time for Stoke City could be enough for Neil to return to full health.
At the very least, it could also be more time for Gayle and Sterling to recuperate even more from their injuries. If either or both players return for The Potters on Monday, it would be a huge boost for the club heading into the New Year.