Stoke City

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Stoke City's first team have moved into new facilities at their Clayton Wood training ground.

The £10m development has taken 15 months to build and includes new and improved performance, recovery, rehabilitation, gymnasium, nutrition and sports science facilities along with a cryotherapy chamber and hydrotherapy pool.

"This is a significant step for the football club and it fills me with great pride to see our new first-team training facility in operation for the first time," said club chairman John Coates.

"Stoke City is my passion and I will continue to do everything in my power to ensure our players and staff have the best environment possible to make us successful."

Image source, Stoke City FC

Stoke are now planning to redevelop an existing building on the site which will be used by their category one academy and women's team.

The club say it will take the total investment to more than £25m since it was bought.

"Clearly the facilities need to be matched by a culture of relentless hard work, which [sporting director] Jon Walters and [head coach] Mark Robins continue to drive every day, in our long-term pursuit of being better than we have ever been before," added Coates.

Stoke are currently 14th in the Championship table, five points adrift of the play-off places and meet Leicester City on Saturday (12:30 GMT).

Image source, EFL

Puma's Rainbow ball will return to the English Football League as part of an on-going campaign against discrimination and homophobia.

The special edition rainbow ball was introduced in 2024 to mark LGBTQ+ History Month and will be used at every EFL game from 20 February until 1 March.

Manufacturers Puma will make a donation to Football v Homophobia for every goal scored with their rainbow ball across the Championship, League One and League Two.

The donations will help support education against homophobia and promote inclusion across the season.

The EFL have released a video, external to coincide with the campaign which features a Preston North End fan who was charged with a hate crime following homophobic chanting during an FA Cup fixture against Chelsea.

The rainbow ball will also feature in EFL partner EA Sports' FC 26 video game.

"The rainbow ball is a powerful symbol of the values we uphold across the EFL all season long," EFL chief executive officer Trevor Birch said.

"It not only reflects our longstanding commitment to ensuring the League is representative of all its diverse communities, but also reminds us that we all have a role to play in creating an environment in which everyone feels they truly belong."

Image source, Shutterstock

Stoke City assistant manager Paul Nevin has left the Championship club.

The 56-year-old joined in January 2025 following Mark Robins' appointment as manager, and was named as part of his backroom team.

He's been alongside Robins for 13 months, with the Potters 14th in the Championship.

Sporting director Jonathan Walters told the club website, external: "Paul leaves with our gratitude for his contribution during his time with the club and best wishes for his future career."

Stoke City boss Mark Robins has defended young goalkeeper Tommy Simkin after his mistake handed Fulham a late winner in their FA Cup fourth-round tie.

The match looked to be heading for extra time after Fulham's Kevin cancelled out Bae Jun-Ho's first-half opener.

But Harrison Reed intercepted a pass from Simkin, making his ninth Potters appearance in place of the injured Viktor Johansson, and Gavin Bazunu fired past the 21-year-old keeper to seal a 2-1 win.

"My teams play football and we want try and do that as well as we possibly can do," Robins told BBC Radio Stoke.

"The ball in that instance can go as far out the stadium as it needs to for me with four minutes to go when you're being pressed. Don't play into the press when the player's coming straight down the line of the pass.

"Tommy will learn from that, he'll get on with it and that's all you can ask from him. Other people can criticise.

"Unfortunately you've got to go through some of these moments when you're a young goalkeeper that's come in, and he's performing really, really well in the absence of Gavin and Viktor."

Robins has called on the rest of his players to learn from their near miss going into the Championship run-in.

"Trying to win the game was the mindset, to try and go through and go as far as you can in the competition," he added.

"We almost did it but I don't want to be an almost, nearly team and we will come out with better results in the future.

"It is disappointing to go out, but now it's done we look back and we can be pleased with a lot of elements of that performance to take into the 14 games that we have left."

Mark Elliott
BBC Radio Stoke’s Stoke City commentator

Image source, Getty Images

They say necessity is the mother of invention and even in defeat against Fulham, Mark Robins and Stoke City may have found a way forward.

Stoke are without something approaching a full team through injury and that has played a major part in the collapse of their promotion challenge.

But despite only having a couple of training sessions in which to implement it, Robins' decision to turn away from the 4-2-3-1 he's predominantly used this season almost helped his team to an FA Cup upset.

With the run of results they've been on, the 3-4-2-1 they deployed felt like something fresh and the Potters certainly have the personnel to play it.

They've always had an abundance of good centre-backs and Eric Bocat looks more comfortable in a wing-back role than he does as an orthodox full-back where his defensive deficiencies can be exposed.

He was excellent going forward throughout the game against top-flight opposition.

The change necessitated the selection of top scorer Sorba Thomas in a deeper role but ahead of him Bae Jun-ho and Lamine Cisse were lively.

Aaron Cresswell came in to offer quality distribution out of the back three and an extra defender behind him could liberate Tomas Rigo in midfield.

Stoke haven't got the depth to rotate their wing-backs, particularly with Junior Tchamadeu out injured, but with only 14 league games to go, the new formation looks like a legitimate short to medium term option.

There are five ties in the FA Cup fourth round on Sunday and BBC Sport will bring you every moment.

• Birmingham v Leeds (12:00) - BBC Radio 5 Live, BBC Radio WM & BBC Radio Leeds

• Grimsby v Wolves (13:30) - BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra 2, BBC Radio Humberside & BBC Radio WM

• Oxford United v Sunderland - BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra 3, BBC Radio Oxford & BBC Radio Newcastle

• Stoke v Fulham - BBC Radio Stoke

• Arsenal v Wigan (16:30) - BBC Radio Manchester

Kick-off times 14:00 GMT unless stated

Follow all of the action and reaction here

You can also listen to today's 5 Live commentaries on most smart speakers. Just say "ask BBC Sounds to play Birmingham v Leeds" or "ask BBC Sounds to play Oxford United v Sunderland", for instance.

Find out more about how to listen to football on BBC Sounds

Stoke's boss is my old Norwich team-mate Mark Robins, who is an excellent manager - he clearly learnt a lot from me - but I fancy Fulham here.

I don't know what Marco Silva's situation is with Fulham and if he is leaving at the end of the season, but he will want to go out with a bang.

I really like the way Silva's side play and I wouldn't rule out the Cottagers' chances of going deep in the FA Cup this season.

Sutton's prediction: 0-2

Read the full predictions and have your say here

Mark Robins hopes Stoke's decline in form and "unprecedented" injury crisis will not affect the morale in the Potters' camp.

Since rising to second place in the Championship after 17 games at the end of November, the Potters have won three, drawn four and lost eight of their next 15 games.

City's injury list grew to double figures with Bosun Lawal limping off with what Robins called a "significant" muscle injury in Wednesday's 1-0 defeat at Charlton, which left Stoke 14th.

He joins goalkeepers Viktor Johansson and Gavin Bazunu, forwards Divin Mubama and Sam Gallagher, midfielder Lewis Baker and right-back Junior Tchamadeu among those in the treatment room, while illness has also spread through the camp leading into Sunday's FA Cup fourth round tie at home to Fulham.

Robins told BBC Radio Stoke: "There's illness and significant injury. It's not an easy time, that's for sure, but it's a challenge I have to face and wade through.

"For me, this is unprecedented in my career, I have never known a situation like this before. Each one has a knock-on and to pick your way through it is difficult.

"It's disappointing, it can be demoralising at times, you can be 'woe is me,' but it's the situation we're in and we have to deal with it, there's nothing I can do about it. The injuries were not avoidable."

Despite the crisis, Robins said he is looking forward to the challenge of facing the Cottagers, who sit 12th in the Premier League.

"It's a good thing because we have a chance to play Premier League opponents," he said. "That's what the Cup throws up. You don't get that chance very often, sometimes pre-season, sometimes not at all."

The injuries have been particularly damaging in an attacking sense - Stoke have only scored twice in their past six matches, and not at all in the past three.

Robins added: "It's something we have to be better at. There are times when we get opportunities to shoot but we turn it down or take it a fraction late.

"The whole ethos in this game is to score. We may forget that at times and pass responsibility to somebody else. Is that a confidence thing? I don't know.

"The front end we have learners with the L plates on. They have to stay confident and positive because these times can impact your confidence and morale.

"In the case of (January arrival) Milan Smit, he's been playing and scoring goals in the Europa League and comes here and you find it different and difficult.

"He's going to be a good player for us but it's going to take time."

Stoke City will be hoping to reap FA Cup revenge on Fulham on Sunday (14:00 GMT) at the bet365 Stadium.

It was the Cottagers who won their first meeting in the competition on home soil, but this time round it's this year's hosts who will be hoping to revel in the jubilation of victory.

But the Premier League side knocked out current Championship leaders Middlesbrough in the last round and Stoke's recent second tier outings haven't looked so shiny.

• Stoke City and Fulham have previously met once before in the FA Cup, with the Cottagers winning 3-0 in the fourth round in January 2007 at Craven Cottage.

• Fulham have progressed from each of their last seven FA Cup ties against sides from a lower division, since losing 2-1 at home to fourth tier Oldham Athletic in January 2019.

• Stoke have progressed from five of their seven FA Cup fourth round ties played on home soil this century, though they were beaten in a penalty shoot-out by Cardiff City in this round last season at the bet365 Stadium after a 3-3 draw.

• Fulham will be looking to reach the FA Cup fifth round for the second consecutive season, last achieving that feat in three seasons in a row between 2008-09 and 2010-11.

• Stoke have won each of their last five home FA Cup ties against sides from London, scoring 13 goals in total during that time which includes a 2-0 victory vs Leyton Orient in their last such match at the third round stage in January 2022.

Mark Elliott
BBC Radio Stoke commentator

Image source, Getty Images

At full-time at The Valley it finally felt as though Stoke City's promotion dream had begun to slip away irretrievably.

You could see it in the body language of the players, heads bowed and shoulders slumped.

You could hear it in the frustration in the voices of Steven Nzonzi and his manager Mark Robins.

You could feel it emanating from an away end full of fans who have grown to associate the capital with gut-wrenching disappointment.

Nzonzi is 37 and a veteran of more than 650 senior games but the hurt was visible in his eyes as he tried to put the disappointment the squad were feeling into words in his post-match interview.

Robins rightly made the point that injuries have wrecked the momentum his squad had built over the opening third of the season, admitting that at some point missing eight, nine or 10 senior players, as the Potters have for much of the season, was always going to catch up with the them.

But he also made the point that they cannot expect more if they continue to be so poor in the final third, questioning his team's effort to get onto the end of crosses and a lack of willingness to shoot.

In the end, Stoke created enough to take something from the game but did not and that has been the story of their season.

A season that promised so much is petering out and for a fanbase who had dared to dream after a flying start, that's so tough to take.

In many ways the disappointment is so much greater because the highs of this campaign have been so good but now, the bigger picture has been replaced by something smaller.

Can the team win on Sunday against Fulham to keep their interest in the FA Cup alive and can they play with a bravery and freedom in the league that comes with having little left to lose?

String a few results together and who knows, Stoke fans might start to dream again but for now, it is about rediscovering their identity, playing at pace and throwing at least some of the contagious caution that has come with their recent form to the wind.

Image source, Getty Images

Stoke City's veteran midfielder Steven Nzonzi told BBC Radio Stoke the Potters are being held back by their inability to find the net after the 1-0 defeat at Charlton. It was their 13th Championship blank of the season.

"I don't think it was a bad game overall. We just conceded that goal and we couldn't score.

"Of course we have to do much better on the goal but then offensively as a team, we have to do much, much better. If you want to win games, you have to score goals.

"We are competitive players, we are a competitive team, we are a competitive club and obviously when you lose you have to be disappointed.

"But the season is not finished, you have to keep working hard and keep training hard and trying to get some points. We have to go and try and win as much as we can and try to play freely."

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Striker Milan Smit says he joined Stoke City to play in the Premier League and to become a more "complete" player.

The Dutch forward, 22, moved to the Potters in the January transfer window on an initial loan deal until the end of the season from Go Ahead Eagles.

He has played twice so far, lasting 90 minutes on his debut against Southampton and the first half of the goalless draw against West Bromwich Albion on Saturday.

And Smit told BBC Radio Stoke, he has already noticed the different demands of playing in England.

"After 30 minutes against Southampton I thought 'wow we've only played 30 minutes', so you have to get used to it," he said.

"You get tired and you have to learn how to look after your body and recover in time for the next game.

"I'm learning a lot. It's totally different here in England - the intensity level is much higher than in Holland and I want to develop myself more here as a complete player and striker."

Smit said it was a "pretty easy" decision to sign for Stoke, despite the lure of playing in Europe with his old club, who were competing in the Europa League after winning the KNVB Cup last season.

"It was a like a one-season thing to play in the Europa [League] and I always said I wanted to play in England," Smit said.

"Stoke were interested and you need to listen to that.

"I knew the ambitions of the club and their plan with me so I said to my agent 'yeah I want to go'. It was pretty easy.

"They have a big history in the Premier League and I'm really proud to play here.

"They said they wanted to go to the Premier League again - that's the ambition - and I'm really looking forward to playing in the Premier League with this club."

Smit said he was also keen not to put too much pressure on himself when it comes to scoring his first goal.

"I haven't got a really big chance so far and you have to be patient," he added.

"I've only been here for two weeks and my team-mates have to get to know me and I have to get to know them - how the wingers play and when they cross the ball.

"When that's settled my goals will come."

Charlton Athletic will hope to pull further clear of the Championship relegation zone when they welcome a Stoke City side looking to reignite their play-off hopes on Wednesday night (kick-off 19:45 GMT).

The Addicks are four points clear of the bottom three and have lost just twice in their past seven games (W2 D2).

The Potters are without a win in their past five games (D3 L2) and have only won four of their previous 17 matches (D4 L9), which has seen them fall from second place on 4 November to 13th (as of 9 February).

• Charlton Athletic have lost just one of their past eight home league meetings with Stoke City (W5 D2), winning their only two this century: 1-0 in January 2008 and 3-1 in August 2019.

• Stoke City have won just one of their previous eight away games against Charlton Athletic (D2 L5), a 2-1 victory in January 1997 under Lou Macari thanks to a Mike Sheron double. Overall, the Potters have won each of their past two league games against the Addicks, previously winning three in a row in January 1997.

• Charlton Athletic won nine of 10 midweek league games (Tue/Wed/Thu) between Boxing Day 2024 and November 2025 (D1), but are winless in their four since (D1 L3).

• Stoke City have won just one of their past 41 league games in London (D14 L26) – a run that stretches back to December 2014 – beating Queens Park Rangers 2-0 in December 2021.

• Charlton manager Nathan Jones has lost five of his six previous league games against former club Stoke City, with the exception a 2-1 away win with Luton Town in February 2022.

Stoke City boss Mark Robins called the side's goalless draw against West Bromwich Albion on Saturday "a difficult watch" as the visitors extended their winless run to a fifth Championship game.

"It was a rubbish game," Robins told BBC Radio Stoke. "I did not enjoy it at all. A clean sheet, a point on the road... you've got to take it. The support was great.

"For whatever reason, we turned the ball over too often, in good areas. I keep saying the same thing - we've got loads of injuries, we've got people coming back from injury. We've got players coming in from abroad, we've got players who haven't played since December, in the case of Jesurun Rak-Sakyi.

"It takes time to knit things together. We didn't mount any sort of attack in the first half which was massively disappointing, but we couldn't do it because we couldn't build. The change at half-time helped us get closer to their goal.

"What we don't want or advocate is that we're ponderous on the ball... we need to pass the ball better, do things with a little more urgency. They have to understand how to do it, and that is the work we have to do moving forwards. It was a difficult watch."

Mark Elliott
BBC Radio Stoke's Stoke City commentator

Image source, Getty Images

At full-time it felt like a point apiece would not really do much to further the ambitions of either team, but so unpredictable is the Championship that other results meant both left The Hawthorns slightly better off.

Stoke dropped a place and fell into the bottom half but actually gained a point on the top six, cutting the deficit to four, while West Brom moved up two places and out of the relegation zone.

With 15 games to go and all to play for, Stoke feel like they are lacking a bit of momentum and belief, particularly when in possession and for a variety of reasons.

They are still bringing players back into the fold after lengthy spells out through injury, while waiting on others to make long-awaited returns and trying to integrate new signings into a team that has been far from free-scoring.

The Potters look like they need a bit of luck or for someone to score a goal out of nothing to instil some confidence and encourage players to shed the shackles that come with a lack of success in the final third.

At times, when the forward pass is on, players in red and white choose the safer option sideways or backwards or they take a little too long to play the right ball because the instinctive decision-making that comes with confidence is not quite there.

After the game, manager Mark Robins spoke at length about those mental aspects and about the time it takes to work on partnerships within a team after a transfer window and a series of injuries.

It is worth repeating that Stoke have done very well to stay in the chasing pack, given the issues they have had with player availability.

Robins is adamant that his players have the quality to turn attacking potential into output and he and his staff are clearly working hard to come through a difficult period in the best possible shape.

Some of his players may just need to trust themselves a little bit more.

Image source, Shutterstock

Stoke City need their new signings to get up to speed as quickly as possible in order for the Potters to challenge for a play-off place, says boss Mark Robins.

The Potters signed four players in January in the form of wingers Jesurun Rak-Sakyi and Ato Ampah, striker Milan Smit and goalkeeper Gavin Bazunu who is now injured.

As he prepares for Saturday's match at West Brom (15:01 GMT), Robins says new additions bring their own challenges.

"When that happens you have a lot of change to your first team from what it was at the start of the season to now," he told BBC Radio Stoke.

"It takes time to get that work into them which is almost like starting again."

Stoke have slipped to 12th place in the Championship with a run of only two points from their past four games and the head coach is conscious they need to let the new players settle in.

"You have players you have been working with for a number of months but you've still got that change and that work has to be repeated and reinforced and that takes a bit of time so hopefully we can get that settled down as soon as possible and get on with things," he added.

"I'm saying we want to attack the top six but I think we should wind that back and say we need to attack this game against West Brom."

Jesurun Rak-Sakyi says joining Stoke will help him develop and he hopes he can secure the Potters a Championship play-off place.

The 23-year-old winger was recalled by parent club Crystal Palace from loan at Turkish Super Lig side Caykur Rizespor last month before being loaned to the Potters on deadline day.

He scored four goals and assisted another in his 11 league games in Rize but will return for the final 16 games of the Championship, in which he played 34 times in a season-long loan at Sheffield United last year.

Rak-Sakyi - who has made eight Premier League appearances for Palace - told BBC Radio Stoke: "Turkey has helped me develop as a person away from the football side, it was definitely a good experience for me.

"I'm very excited to be here. It's been in the works for a long time.

"[Choosing where to go] was a headache but I am happy that I know I have picked the right club for me, my playing style and somewhere I can develop to take me to the next level of my career.

"You want somewhere that's going to give you a platform to do what you are good at and a manager [Mark Robins] who's good at playing young players, that was very important for me."

The Potters are 12th, five points outside the top-six in a congested table, but Rak-Sakyi says making the play-offs is their target.

"It's a long season, the table right now doesn't really speak for itself, only in May we'll know who's where," he added.

"We have got a good team and a good squad and something we can build on, we're definitely looking forward to trying to be in those play-off spots."

He also said he is up for the battle with Stoke's array of talented wide-men, which includes Sorba Thomas, Million Manhoef, Ato Ampah and Lamine Cisse, for playing time.

"Everywhere you go there's going to be competition, there's a lot of good wingers here but everyone wants to achieve the same thing so it makes everyone want to work harder and be more determined to play," he said.