Nathan Jones insists Stoke City are working religiously to score
Posted on May 15, 2019 in Stoke
Stoke City manager Nathan Jones has revealed that the club will do their best to solve their goalkeeping woes ahead of next season. The Staffordshire outfit have produced plenty of blanks during the second half of the campaign and one of those came during the recent 1-0 Championship defeat at the hands of Middlesbrough.
Speaking after that game, Jones cited that the club lacked the ruthlessness to get something out of the encounter. He added that the Potters have spent extensively on attacking players and the emphasis is on the coaching staff to improve on the team’s fortunes upfront, he said: “We didn’t have a ruthless streak, somebody to take the chances. That’s what we will bring into the club – a ruthless streak and energy.
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Goals from Will Vaulks and Matts Crooks levelled the proceedings for Rotherham in the second half and the Potters were eventually lucky to come up with a point after some top-notch goalkeeping from Jack Butland at the end. Speaking after the game, Jones was far from pleased with the showing and emphasised the need to concentrate through the entire 90 minutes.
In a report covered by the ECHO, Williams admitted that he is facing a frustrating situation at the Bet365 Stadium where he has barely featured in the past few months. Nonetheless, he is not prepared to give up on his career and he will continue to give his best shot for the remaining games of the campaign.
Speaking after the game, Jones was far from impressed with the Potters performance as they failed to attain their first win on the road since October. He added that the game should have been finished within the first period where they had multiple scoring opportunities and the failure to do so cost them with Ipswich coming out fighting following the break.
In the opening two games, Batth has witnessed the Potters suffer defeats against Hull City and West Bromwich Albion respectively but he remains upbeat for a change in momentum during the upcoming game at struggling Wigan Athletic, he enthused: “It’s a great stadium and a great fan baseand I’m looking to do well for the club and the fans. They’ve had a tough few years, so if I can be part of the revival, and what the manager is trying to do, fantastic. We have to really build and use the rest of the season in a positive way to try and get the fans behind us and stick to our task.”
Still, there were some positives with the Potters returning to scoring ways after three Championship matches and Jones is now looking forward to the Cup replay against Shrewsbury where he could offer the opportunity for the reserve players. Speaking to reporters, Jones confirmed that changes are likely for the midweek Cup tie but he would not want to hamper the balance within the team.
Speaking after the goalless draw, Rowett admitted that the supporters are permitted to chant anything they want during the game but he was not appreciative of the booing policy right from the early stages of the first half, he told BT Sport: “They can chant what they want at me. That’s fair enough. I wouldn’t criticise them for giving me some stick either about the football or the amount of wins we have got. But to boo your own team after 20 minutes is not helpful. If I say it and I get criticism, I am not really bothered. We had control of the game for the first 20 minutes and passed the ball well. Our first backward pass and they boo.”
However, over the past month, that has seen an improvement with goalkeeper Jack Butland particularly impressive between the sticks and Rowett is now concerned about the goals which have dried up of late. Speaking to reporters, Rowett said: “If you look at the season so far, we were creating lots of chances early season, but it was no good scoring two if we are conceding three.
However, since the last international break, his performances have improved vastly and he has made some standout interceptions including one in each of the previous two matches versus Middlesbrough and Nottingham Forest respectively. Speaking in a news conference, Rowett suggested that Butland may have been mentally affected after the Potters drop into the second tier but he is now coming back to his old self after keeping three clean sheets on the bounce.
Speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live, Adam admitted that Smith is a good option for the Villains with his good track record in the Championship but believes the likes of Moyes and Allardyce may have been better choices to enhance their prospects of top-flight promotion, he spoke: “For me, if I’m on the outside, I’m going for the quick fix now.