Stoke City

Oxford United host Stoke City tonight (19:45 GMT) as they look to stop the Potters pushing their way into the automatic promotion spots.

Oxford didn't register their first league win until September 21. Since then, they have taken their win tally up to three games for the season. However, the U's only managed to scrape a draw last time out against Millwall, with an added-time equaliser.

Stoke now sit just one point behind Middlesbrough in the table, as they aim to get back into the top two.

The Potters face Oxford following back-to-back wins, which featured a 5-1 thrashing of Bristol City.

• Oxford United have never lost a home game in the Football League against Stoke City in eight previous meetings (W6 D2), only facing Ipswich Town more often on home turf without losing (P12 W5 D7).

• Stoke City have won only one of their last eight league games against Oxford United (D4 L3), a 4-0 home win in September 2000 in the third tier.

• Oxford United are winless in their last six midweek (Tue/Wed/Thu) league games (D2 L4), since a 3-2 home win against Luton Town in January.

• Stoke beat Portsmouth 1-0 at Fratton Park in their final game of October but the Potters haven't won back-to-back away games without conceding in the Championship since December 2021/January 2022 (2-0 v QPR and Hull City).

• This will be ninth meeting between Oxford manager Gary Rowett and Stoke manager Mark Robins in the Football League, with both winning three of the previous eight (D2).

Image source, Getty Images

Stoke City full-back Junior Tchamadeu has a "massive ceiling" that could see him poached away from the bet365 Stadium and into the Premier League.

That is if the Potters are not promoted this season, A Cold Wet Tuesday Night podcast co-host Ben Rowley believes.

Tchamadeu, 21, joined Stoke from League Two Colchester United in 2023, and after an injury-hit debut campaign remained a regular throughout the 2024-25 season despite the club's managerial turmoil.

This term, Tchamadeu has started at right-back in every Championship match for which he has been available under Mark Robins, including last weekend's 5-1 rout of Bristol City - a game in which he scored what he said is "probably the best" goal of his career, and set up the opener for hat-trick hero Divin Mubama.

Analysing the win which took Stoke up to third, just four points shy of table toppers Coventry City, on his podcast, Rowley said: "I think we saw the good and the bad of him today; there were a couple of times early on with some loose passes from the back, petulantly nudging the ball away to get himself a yellow card, and those sorts of yellow cards are a shame because we want him available.

"But for me, he was my man of the match despite Mubama getting the hat-trick.

"He was everything you want from a Stoke City full-back - powerful, good in the tackle, sensational work rate, pacey, creating chances for his team-mates, and that goal."

Of Tchamadeu's growing credentials, Rowley added that the Cameroon international is "becoming amongst the league's best full-backs", and he was part of the Championship's best defence.

"It's incredible that he can provide those offensive contributions when the defence is so solid," Rowley added.

"He's got a massive ceiling. If we don't go up, he's got someone like a Crystal Palace written all over him, unfortunately. If we don't take advantage of this season, he'll absolutely not be here next season because his talent is there for all to see now."

Next up for Robins' side is a trip to 18th-placed Oxford United on Tuesday followed by Saturday's home game with Coventry.

Mark Elliott
Stoke City commentator for BBC Radio Stoke

Image source, Rex Features

Divin Mubama clutched the match ball to his chest like a Christmas present in the five o'clock darkness that signals the arrival of the meaty part of the Championship season.

To stick with the festive theme, November began with fireworks at the Bet365 Stadium as his hat-trick, a brilliant solo effort from Junior Tchamadeu, and another for Million Manhoef fulfilled a prophecy that manager Mark Robins has repeated several times over the past few weeks.

Stoke haven't been scoring enough, they haven't been efficient enough in front of goal, and their brilliant start to the season has been characterised by hard-fought wins. Until now.

Robins said someone would be on the wrong end of a big score before long - and he was proven emphatically right.

When Stoke went through the gears and hit top speed, Bristol City couldn't live with them. The visitors were poor, but were made to look abject.

Mubama scored three strikers' goals; close-range finishes, pouncing on a mixture of defensive errors and great service, to more than double his goal tally for the season.

He's a young man and understandably looked relieved, delighted and full of belief again.

His team-mates set a new standard in this game. We know they're defensively solid, but, if they can match the tempo, quality and efficiency of this performance consistently, there are no limits on what they can achieve between now and May.

Image source, Getty Images

Mark Robins hailed one of the best home performances since he became Stoke City manager after the 5-1 win over Bristol City.

Divin Mubama scored a hat-trick for the Potters as they inflicted a first away loss of the season on their opponents.

"The way we set about things, the intent was there, but the quality was there," Robins told BBC Radio Stoke.

"The understanding from the players, that interplay, the exchange of passes and movement, and the intensity to go and do their jobs in and out of possession.

"They were unbeaten away from home this season before today, they're a good team. We've had probably one of the best performances at home since I came in.

"We talk about the incremental improvements, and you could see today there was a vast improvement, not just incremental.

"The thing for us is to not worry about having to repeat that, because we've seen lots and lots of really good repetitive things in games where we've been really good and smart. Today we were smarter than before."

Stoke City boss Mark Robins says that while his side has seen massive improvement in defence this season, none of his players have yet hit "their top level."

The Potters currently possess the joint-best defensive record in the Championship this season, alongside Middlesbrough, conceding just eight goals across their opening 12 games.

Just seven sides let in more goals last season than Stoke's 62.

"We are trying to improve all the time," Robins told BBC Radio Stoke.

"If we continue in the same vein, then we will improve and will keep getting better and close to the goal - the ultimate goal of being at the top of the division at the end of the season rather than talking about it after 12 games.

"While no-one is at their top, top level yet, there is scope for it to happen and for people to improve."

Much of Stoke's back line were part of the relegation battle last season, including defenders Ben Wilmot, Ashley Phillips, Junior Tchamadeu and Eric Bocat.

However, Robins believes that the experience gained during the fight at the bottom end of the table is now benefiting his players this season, as they look to contend for promotion at the other end.

"Confidence is huge," he added.

"I think the confidence you can glean from those moments where it's not gone brilliantly but you've come through it, that can have a bonding effect and also give you confidence to deal with adversity.

"Also then to try and go and deal with the different sort of pressures in being in a different part of the division, which is where everyone wants to be."

Listen to the full interview with Robins and more Stoke City content on BBC Sounds.

Both Bristol City and Stoke City will be looking to keep themselves in the mix at the top when they face each other at the bet365 Stadium on Saturday (15:00 GMT).

The two sides currently sit next to each other on the table, with the Robins taking a slender one point lead over the fifth placed Potters but trailing leaders Coventry City by six points prior to the weekend.

Bristol City could enter the top two with a victory should other results fall their way, while Stoke will want to take three points to secure their place in the top six for another weekend.

• Stoke City have lost five of their seven home league games against Bristol City since New Years Day 2019, their joint-most defeats on home soil against any side in that time period (also West Brom and Preston with five).

• Bristol City have lost just four of their last 13 league games against Stoke City (W7 D2), avoiding defeat in both meetings with the Potters last term (2-2 away, 2-0 home).

• Stoke have lost just two of their last 11 home league games (W6 D3), keeping five clean sheets during that time.

• Bristol City have won each of their last three league games and will be looking to win four in succession for the first time since their opening four matches of the 2020-21 campaign.

• Stoke City goalkeeper Viktor Johansson holds a 81.8% save percentage in the Championship this season, the best rate of any goalkeeper to face 10+ shots on target this term.

"Room to improve going forward certainly but defence? I think we have a really solid foundation with the plethora of options we have and, of course, [Viktor] Johansson in goal, who is magnificent.

"What a headache the manager has now, particularly when his unavailable options [in central defence] come back to him."

Lucas Yeomans and Ben Rowley discuss Stoke City's outstanding defensive performances this season, who has impressed and whether the Potters might just have the best back-line in the Championship.

Listen to the full episode of A Cold Wet Tuesday Night and more Stoke City content on BBC Sounds.

Mark Elliott
Stoke City commentator for BBC Radio Stoke

Image source, Rex Features

In the age of "goal involvements" and a greater focus on assists as a statistic, it seems really harsh to deny players credit for a pass that causes an own goal.

Sorba Thomas' cross which forced Portsmouth defender Hayden Matthews into an intervention as unintended as it was decisive was a delivery worthy of recognition.

Thomas' ability from set-pieces and his quality from wide areas was widely praised before and after he signed for Stoke, but he can't have produced many more sustained periods of consistent quality than he has over the first dozen games of the season.

Stoke have scored 13 goals in the league and if you include the goal against Portsmouth, Thomas has been directly involved in nine.

He's scored four, assisted four more and created the winner at Fratton Park which works out at just under 70% of all of the goals Stoke have scored in the Championship this term.

Thomas has been an outstanding addition to the squad, whose energy and dribbling ability has given Stoke a consistently viable outlet when defending and, accused of sometimes lacking concentration early in his career, his defensive work has improved significantly too.

He's an important player for Wales now too and well on his way to setting career best marks for goals and assists in a season.

He'll certainly surpass the five goals he scored in the National League for Boreham Wood in 2019-20 and the tally of 12 assists he registered for Huddersfield in 2021-22 is more than beatable with 34 games still to play.

Now Stoke need one or two of his team-mates to get closer to matching Thomas' output.

Mark Robins felt his Stoke City team were "good enough" to deserve the three points after they beat Portsmouth 1-0.

The Potters manager told BBC Radio Stoke: "The performance was good enough, first half especially, I thought we were really good and should have been 2-0 up.

"We didn't take those chances and gave the opposition the encouragement to remain in the game when we should have put it to bed.

"They smelt that and came out in the second half to put us under a lot of pressure to start with, but we also put ourselves under pressure with a lot of strange decisions, but had a brilliant goalkeeper who made a great save.

"When we needed to, we defended properly and saw the game out."

Stoke City boss Mark Robins is expecting an intense atmosphere as his side travel to Fratton Park to face Portsmouth on Saturday (12:30 BST).

Robins' side started off the campaign strongly by winning their opening three games, but one win in their last six has seen them slip down to sixth place.

They take on a Pompey side who are as far from the play-off places as the bottom three. The hosts know that three points at home would steer them in the right direction.

Robins told BBC Radio Stoke: "Every time you go to Fratton Park the atmosphere is boisterous, it's partisan, it's high in number and it's a demanding environment, they'll appeal for everything for their team, our supporters do the same,

"They play with an intensity, they've got some good players, they've changed the way they've gone about things, they've got suspensions and an injury as well and I think that you expect a tough game,

"Obviously we've got experience on the back of last season there, we've got that to draw on, but also the experiences we're having so far this season, we certainly go with a view to having a really strong performance."

Listen to the full interview and more on BBC Sounds

Mark Elliott
Stoke City commentator for BBC Radio Stoke

Image source, Rex Features

Millwall on a Tuesday night is a tough assignment but having made four changes from the side that beat Wrexham at the weekend, Mark Robins was disappointed with his team's performance in response to the challenge of the Lions.

Stoke started both halves well enough but both times things unravelled as Robins blamed poor decision-making for their lack of any meaningful success in the game.

"Nine times out of 10" the manager said players in red and white made the wrong choice when faced with an in-game decision.

Midfielder Tomas Rigo (pictured) also spoke about composure, particularly in attack, when asked what needs to improve for Stoke to score more goals and win games like this. He spoke about calmness, patience and making the right choices, echoing his manager.

Defensively, the mistakes made for both goals went against the grain of the season so far but it's not the first time decision-making in possession has been blamed as a major reason for dropped points.

Stoke lost too many duels against a physical side too, something we have not seen since defeat at QPR earlier in the season.

All will be forgotten with a good result at Portsmouth on Saturday but the biggest positive may be that what Stoke need to improve upon to win another away game at an atmospheric, rowdy ground is clear.

Stoke City manager Mark Robins, speaking to BBC Radio Stoke after Tuesday's 2-0 loss at Millwall:

"We were poor. This was our first big, big test I felt and we failed it. I'm disappointed but we have to lick our wounds and get on with it.

"We conceded two really poor goals. We kept chasing our game; we couldn't find it. People would start to do things that were a bit alien to them.

"We just didn't give ourselves a chance in the game after the first 10 minutes.

"We've lost a high percentage of the duels today and they've come out on top which isn't a surprise. If they'd been better in front of goal we'd have lost by a bigger margin. It was a really, really disappointing evening.

"If we think we're a top two team, we are miles away from that and that's evidenced tonight."

Stoke City defender Ashley Phillips admits he has had to be patient for game time this season, but says he feels at home with the club.

The Potters are currently third in the Championship and face an away trip against Millwall on Tuesday night (19:45 BST).

He told BBC Radio Stoke: "I didn't get a single minute in pre-season so it has been about getting up to speed so far, but when you are in the side it's about staying in.

"I have had to be patient but the competition has been great and we are all pushing each other which has helped us end up being as high up as we are.

"It feels like a family, it feels like home for everyone. Everybody is pushing each other and we hold each other accountable, which is what you need to be high up in the league."

Mark Robins' side hold the best defensive record in the league so far, with only six goals conceded in their opening 10 games.

"It is brilliant news to have the record, it means that we are doing our jobs and clean sheets win games," said Phillips.

"We have to take one game at a time as in the Championship anyone can beat anyone on their day, so we have to be humble."

Stoke City head to South London with the best defensive record in the Championship having conceded only six goals in their 10 matches so far

Millwall are looking to record three league wins in a row for the first time since April.

• Millwall have only lost one of their past 13 league meetings with Stoke City (W7 D5), going down 2-0 in March 2022.

• Stoke have lost each of their past four league visits to Millwall and could lose five in a row for the first time.

• Millwall have won seven of their past 10 home league games, although have lost three of their past five such matches.

• Since losing 6-0 at Leeds in April, Stoke have shipped just three goals across their past six away league outings.

• Millwall's Alex Neil has won five of his past six league matches against former side Stoke, losing the other 1-0 with Preston in September 2020.

Betty Glover
BBC Final Score reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Stoke kicked off the season in style — their best start in 27 years — with four wins from five league games in August.

But the momentum stalled heading into the international break.

A four-game winless run, including three straight draws, left fans feeling frustrated.

Then again, that frustration might just be a sign of how far this team has come.

Defensively, they've looked solid throughout, but a lack of goals had become a growing concern. That's why Saturday's 1-0 win over Wrexham will feel like a relief, even if Sorba Thomas' winner was a bit fortuitous.

Mark Robins' side controlled large spells of the game, especially after the break, with Wrexham struggling to find any real rhythm.

Thomas was a standout once again — grabbing his fourth goal of the season and causing constant problems down the left. He's clearly thriving in a Stoke shirt now, with seven goal involvements in nine appearances.

Robins said he wanted to hit the ground running after the break — and so far, so good.

Mark Elliott
Stoke City commentator for BBC Radio Stoke

Image source, Getty Images

These are the kind of victories that secure a team a top six place come May.

Wins over Wrexham always require a side to battle and work hard and defend well and so far this season Stoke City have been excellent at all of those things.

They have the best defensive record in the division over the first 10 games and this game again highlighted the great foundation for success that provides.

Bosun Lawal is out for a few weeks but Ashley Phillips has stepped in and performed brilliantly. He won countless headers and alongside Ben Wilmot stood up to the physical challenge of Phil Parkinson's side and their giant centre forward Kieffer Moore.

England Under-21 defender Phillips was the best player on the pitch by a distance.

Stoke defend well as a team though and few clubs will find them easy to beat this season. They're a top-six side defensively and stubborn, competitive and tenacious enough to turn those qualities into plenty of wins of their own.

But that brings us back to a familiar conclusion, something that has been inescapable for weeks now.

Whether they are legitimate contenders for promotion this season will depend on whether or not they can get better in front of goal.

Sorba Thomas has been magnificent this season but ironically scored with what may have been a cross. He missed a good chance late on as did Million Manhoef when he hit the bar when he should have found the net.

The win could have been more comfortable than it was, even had Wrexham converted their own best chance when Ryan Longman missed an open goal at 0-0.

At least the chances are coming. Perhaps someone is about to be on the receiving end of one of those games where everything for Stoke flies in.

Stoke City manager Mark Robins says he wants to "hit the ground running" after "a bit of downtime" over the international break.

The Potters are fifth in the Championship but are winless in four matches after a 1-0 defeat to QPR on 20 September was followed by three consecutive draws.

"I think it is important for us all to have a bit of downtime, as it is such a long season," Robins told BBC Radio Stoke.

"It is really intense and the opportunity to take some time is important.

"We never stop working anyway, you are always looking at clips and bits of games of what has gone and what is coming up next - but it is full on.

"So, to take a little bit of time out is really important to try and clear your mind and get a fresh look at things when you come back to it."

Stoke host Wrexham on Saturday when Robins will see some familiar faces in the form of Ben Sheaf and Callum Doyle, both of who played under him during his tenure at Coventry City.

"Wrexham have got a new team that they put together in the summer," said Robins.

"It looks like they have made real significant strides again this season. So, they will want to continue that, we want to puncture that a little bit. We are after the three points as much as they are.

"Hopefully we can hit the ground running again coming back from an international break like we have done previously."

Listen to the full interview with Robins and more Stoke City content on BBC Sounds.

Image source, Opta

The international break is finally over and Stoke will seek to get back to winning ways when they welcome Wrexham to the Bet365 on Saturday (15:00 BST).

After taking 12 points from their opening five matches to sit in the automatic promotion places, the Potters are winless in their past four, taking three points and scoring only twice in that run, to sit fifth.

Wrexham are 13 places behind them but only five points back in a congested table, having lost just one of their past seven games.

• This will be the first Football League meeting between Stoke City and Wrexham since a 1-0 win for the Potters in April 2002, with Andy Cooke scoring the winner in that third tier encounter.

• In the Football League, Wrexham have lost 11 of their 12 games against Stoke City, with their only win coming on the road in February 1999 (3-1).

• Stoke's 92% win ratio against Wrexham in the Football League (11 wins in 12 meetings) is the second-best of any side in Football League history against an opponent they've faced 10+ times – only Man Utd vs Wigan (94%, 15 wins in 16 games) have a better ratio.

• Wrexham have drawn each of their past three games 1-1, against Derby, Leicester and Birmingham. They last had a longer run of draws in the Football League in November/December 1999 (6 in a row).

• Stoke's Sorba Thomas has created the most chances in the Championship this season (25), also creating the most chances in open play (19). He's assisted four of Stoke's 11 league goals in 2025-26.