Stoke City v Everton: Potters aim to end Toffees’ Euro hopes
Barcelona’s Sergio Busquets has been hammered in the media this week for falling to the ground after hardly being touched and looking through his fingers to see if the referee had sent off Inter Milan’s Tiago Motta. It was a heinous crime and something UEFA should – although I won’t hold my breath – take decisive action on. However, nobody would have thought anything less of Stoke boss Tony Pulis if he had been caught doing the same last Sunday against Chelsea.
Watching a horror movie or seeing your girlfriend’s best mate undress are acceptable reasons for watching through your fingertips but the Potters’ performance last weekend is right up there too. Normally so solid defensively and full of fight, Stoke City were torn apart by a rampaging Chelsea side who could have run up a cricket score. Pulis will be demanding a positive response from his players this afternoon, although they are up against another one of the league’s in-form sides Everton.
The Toffees enter the game five points behind their city rivals Liverpool having won 11 of their past 18 matches this season and haven’t lost to Stoke City since 1982. David Moyes’s men haven’t tasted defeat since Spurs beat them at White Hart Lane 10 games ago and will not give up hope of overtaking the Reds until it’s mathematically impossible.
The Britannia Stadium is one of the most intimidating grounds in English football and their home form was instrumental in keeping them up last season, however, they have only managed one win in front of their own fans in the past five league outings and Everton will be keen to capitalise on that this afternoon.
With Liverpool playing leaders Chelsea tomorrow, Everton must win to keep the pressure on the under-fire Rafael Benitez.
