The close games Stoke were winning during the first quarter of the season have now turned into defeats. They were decent in possession and worth a point at Watford but got nothing and again looked relatively blunt in attack. Firstly, they'll have to deal with what the manager Mark Robins called a changed dynamic, created by the absence of Junior Tchamadeu. Talovierov is a centre back by trade and will come again but Tchamadeu's absence affected the balance of the team significantly. Finally, they need to be more efficient in front of goal, but that is something everyone who watches Stoke regularly has been saying for a while.

Source: BBC December 22, 2025 20:00 UTC