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Post by Deleted on Mar 5, 2015 0:38:16 GMT
Looks very likely , our highest ever league position in the Premiership. Strength and depth as a result of some very shrewd management. All achieved on bugger all and in a very short space of time by Hughesy. All that can stop us now is a couple more injuries to key players ......thinking about it , this coincidently could be our worst season for injuries , which once again reinforces the fact of how far we have come.
Thank god the top teams are doing what is expected from them . The league has now taken shape in a familiar format with the regulars at the top once more. The reason I mention this is that now Mark Hughes has rejuvenated his career , his stock has also risen and may have provoked hostile bids .
I just hope that he signs a new contract and we get Moses signed up. This should be our joint priority targets. After that I'm not too worried as this season we have secured our place in the Premiership in record time and we have Odemwingie and Bojan to look forward to.
Things are going better than ever before . Players seem to be really enjoying their football and none more so than the likes of NZonzi ....DIouf seems to be getting better and more relaxed. Walters is having a good season , Whelan is too. Wolshied is settling in nicely and has made a very promising start to his career.
The only one whose form and consistency needs to improve is Arnautovic . This isn't so much as a critical comment but a more general observation. I expected him to really improve under Mark Hughes but it's not quite happened. Satisfactory is perhaps the best way to describe his season so far . I really thought he may have really excelled.
Marks out of 10 this season has to be at least a nine. Next season has all the promise of even greater achievements ....IF We can hold on to Mr Mark Hughes .
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Post by ukcstokie on Mar 5, 2015 0:53:52 GMT
Looks very likely , our highest ever league position in the Premiership. Strength and depth as a result of some very shrewd management. All achieved on bugger all and in a very short space of time by Hughesy. All that can stop us now is a couple more injuries to key players ......thinking about it , this coincidently could be our worst season for injuries , which once again reinforces the fact of how far we have come. Thank god the top teams are doing what is expected from them . The league has now taken shape in a familiar format with the regulars at the top once more. The reason I mention this is that now Mark Hughes has rejuvenated his career , his stock has also risen and may have provoked hostile bids . I just hope that he signs a new contract and we get Moses signed up. This should be our joint priority targets. After that I'm not too worried as this season we have secured our place in the Premiership in record time and we have Odemwingie and Bojan to look forward to. Things are going better than ever before . Players seem to be really enjoying their football and none more so than the likes of NZonzi ....DIouf seems to be getting better and more relaxed. Walters is having a good season , Whelan is too. Wolshied is settling in nicely and has made a very promising start to his career. The only one whose form and consistency needs to improve is Arnautovic . This isn't so much as a critical comment but a more general observation. I expected him to really improve under Mark Hughes but it's not quite happened. Satisfactory is perhaps the best way to describe his season so far . I really thought he may have really excelled. Marks out of 10 this season has to be at least a nine. Next season has all the promise of even greater achievements ....IF We can hold on to Mr Mark Hughes . Good post mumf. On the question of if clubs will come sniffing around Mark Hughes? Given the perception of MH's time at Man City, I think it's highly unlikely that one of the clubs with Champions League's aspirations would be interested. That'd only leave the likes of Everton, Villa and Newcastle who could come in. They'd all seem like a risky move for him at the moment, so hopefully we've got him for a while. |
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Post by Deleted on Mar 5, 2015 1:04:08 GMT
Looks very likely , our highest ever league position in the Premiership. Strength and depth as a result of some very shrewd management. All achieved on bugger all and in a very short space of time by Hughesy. All that can stop us now is a couple more injuries to key players ......thinking about it , this coincidently could be our worst season for injuries , which once again reinforces the fact of how far we have come. Thank god the top teams are doing what is expected from them . The league has now taken shape in a familiar format with the regulars at the top once more. The reason I mention this is that now Mark Hughes has rejuvenated his career , his stock has also risen and may have provoked hostile bids . I just hope that he signs a new contract and we get Moses signed up. This should be our joint priority targets. After that I'm not too worried as this season we have secured our place in the Premiership in record time and we have Odemwingie and Bojan to look forward to. Things are going better than ever before . Players seem to be really enjoying their football and none more so than the likes of NZonzi ....DIouf seems to be getting better and more relaxed. Walters is having a good season , Whelan is too. Wolshied is settling in nicely and has made a very promising start to his career. The only one whose form and consistency needs to improve is Arnautovic . This isn't so much as a critical comment but a more general observation. I expected him to really improve under Mark Hughes but it's not quite happened. Satisfactory is perhaps the best way to describe his season so far . I really thought he may have really excelled. Marks out of 10 this season has to be at least a nine. Next season has all the promise of even greater achievements ....IF We can hold on to Mr Mark Hughes . Good post mumf. On the question of if clubs will come sniffing around Mark Hughes? Given the perception of MH's time at Man City, I think it's highly unlikely that one of the clubs with Champions League's aspirations would be interested. That'd only leave the likes of Everton, Villa and Newcastle who could come in. They'd all seem like a risky move for him at the moment, so hopefully we've got him for a while. My thoughts too..,! |
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Post by Deleted on Mar 5, 2015 9:16:04 GMT
I think he'll sign soon! Fantastic team with more to come, methinks!
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Post by salopstick on Mar 5, 2015 10:30:52 GMT
Looks very likely , our highest ever league position in the Premiership. Strength and depth as a result of some very shrewd management. All achieved on bugger all and in a very short space of time by Hughesy. All that can stop us now is a couple more injuries to key players ......thinking about it , this coincidently could be our worst season for injuries , which once again reinforces the fact of how far we have come. Thank god the top teams are doing what is expected from them . The league has now taken shape in a familiar format with the regulars at the top once more. The reason I mention this is that now Mark Hughes has rejuvenated his career , his stock has also risen and may have provoked hostile bids . I just hope that he signs a new contract and we get Moses signed up. This should be our joint priority targets. After that I'm not too worried as this season we have secured our place in the Premiership in record time and we have Odemwingie and Bojan to look forward to. Things are going better than ever before . Players seem to be really enjoying their football and none more so than the likes of NZonzi ....DIouf seems to be getting better and more relaxed. Walters is having a good season , Whelan is too. Wolshied is settling in nicely and has made a very promising start to his career. The only one whose form and consistency needs to improve is Arnautovic . This isn't so much as a critical comment but a more general observation. I expected him to really improve under Mark Hughes but it's not quite happened. Satisfactory is perhaps the best way to describe his season so far . I really thought he may have really excelled. Marks out of 10 this season has to be at least a nine. Next season has all the promise of even greater achievements ....IF We can hold on to Mr Mark Hughes . Jesus Christ Ted |
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Post by FullerMagic on Mar 5, 2015 10:35:03 GMT
Good one, mumf. These are great days. John Percy in TelegraphFor Stoke City, this was further evidence of their progress under manager Mark Hughes, who is expected to sign a new three-year contract in the next few days. |
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Post by stokiejoe on Mar 5, 2015 14:58:09 GMT
I was around and watched the Waddo seasons and I totally agree with you. It's great to be a Stokie and I am positive there is more to come.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 5, 2015 19:31:22 GMT
Looks very likely , our highest ever league position in the Premiership. Strength and depth as a result of some very shrewd management. All achieved on bugger all and in a very short space of time by Hughesy. All that can stop us now is a couple more injuries to key players ......thinking about it , this coincidently could be our worst season for injuries , which once again reinforces the fact of how far we have come. Thank god the top teams are doing what is expected from them . The league has now taken shape in a familiar format with the regulars at the top once more. The reason I mention this is that now Mark Hughes has rejuvenated his career , his stock has also risen and may have provoked hostile bids . I just hope that he signs a new contract and we get Moses signed up. This should be our joint priority targets. After that I'm not too worried as this season we have secured our place in the Premiership in record time and we have Odemwingie and Bojan to look forward to. Things are going better than ever before . Players seem to be really enjoying their football and none more so than the likes of NZonzi ....DIouf seems to be getting better and more relaxed. Walters is having a good season , Whelan is too. Wolshied is settling in nicely and has made a very promising start to his career. The only one whose form and consistency needs to improve is Arnautovic . This isn't so much as a critical comment but a more general observation. I expected him to really improve under Mark Hughes but it's not quite happened. Satisfactory is perhaps the best way to describe his season so far . I really thought he may have really excelled. Marks out of 10 this season has to be at least a nine. Next season has all the promise of even greater achievements ....IF We can hold on to Mr Mark Hughes . Jesus Christ Ted This post was at least 10,000 short of a Ted special. I think a top eight is possible this season and possibly even better next . We need both Bojan and Moses on board all season though. Moses has to some extent filled Bojans boots and that is why we desperately need to sign him up . |
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Post by Miles Offside on Mar 5, 2015 19:41:59 GMT
Almost certainly it's going to be our best top flight finish since Waddo, but for me we haven't yet beaten the first season we came up to the Prem.
Every home game was pure theatre. The opposition usually didn't have a clue how to handle us at the Brit. Our crowd gained an international reputation for being the noisiest and most intimidating around and we confounded everybody who thought we'd go straight back down. And that was a lot of people.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 5, 2015 19:54:28 GMT
Almost certainly it's going to be our best top flight finish since Waddo, but for me we haven't yet beaten the first season we came up to the Prem. Every home game was pure theatre. The opposition usually didn't have a clue how to handle us at the Brit. Our crowd gained an international reputation for being the noisiest and most intimidating around and we confounded everybody who thought we'd go straight back down. And that was a lot of people. For sex appeal,and star quality you're absolutely correct , but this season is now about complete relaxed satisitafction with the added dash of smugness and recognition from everyone in football that we have arrived and that we are here to stay. |
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Post by pbpotter on Mar 5, 2015 19:55:11 GMT
Agree with you Miles Offside.
Still... Time moves on and so must we. Personally I don't want to spend another 23 years outside the top flight to repeat the first back in the top division. And so we must now look upwards.
We are fortunate (and by god we've being patient) but our lot is a pretty good one today. And so we move on from here....It's different but the ride is currently enjoyable, long may it continue and here's to Hughes right now!
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Post by Linx on Mar 5, 2015 20:06:24 GMT
Looks very likely , our highest ever league position in the Premiership. Strength and depth as a result of some very shrewd management. All achieved on bugger all and in a very short space of time by Hughesy. All that can stop us now is a couple more injuries to key players ......thinking about it , this coincidently could be our worst season for injuries , which once again reinforces the fact of how far we have come. Thank god the top teams are doing what is expected from them . The league has now taken shape in a familiar format with the regulars at the top once more. The reason I mention this is that now Mark Hughes has rejuvenated his career , his stock has also risen and may have provoked hostile bids . I just hope that he signs a new contract and we get Moses signed up. This should be our joint priority targets. After that I'm not too worried as this season we have secured our place in the Premiership in record time and we have Odemwingie and Bojan to look forward to. Things are going better than ever before . Players seem to be really enjoying their football and none more so than the likes of NZonzi ....DIouf seems to be getting better and more relaxed. Walters is having a good season , Whelan is too. Wolshied is settling in nicely and has made a very promising start to his career. The only one whose form and consistency needs to improve is Arnautovic . This isn't so much as a critical comment but a more general observation. I expected him to really improve under Mark Hughes but it's not quite happened. Satisfactory is perhaps the best way to describe his season so far . I really thought he may have really excelled. Marks out of 10 this season has to be at least a nine. Next season has all the promise of even greater achievements ....IF We can hold on to Mr Mark Hughes . Good post mumf. On the question of if clubs will come sniffing around Mark Hughes? Given the perception of MH's time at Man City, I think it's highly unlikely that one of the clubs with Champions League's aspirations would be interested. That'd only leave the likes of Everton, Villa and Newcastle who could come in. They'd all seem like a risky move for him at the moment, so hopefully we've got him for a while. Interest from Everton would be the biggest worry. Similar ownership model to Stoke with a patient chairman. Close to where LMH lives and, whether we like to admit it or not, a much bigger club than Stoke. I suspect that Kenwright is looking ruefully at his decision to hire Martinez rather than Hughes. Weren't they available at more or less the same time? |
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Post by lordb on Mar 5, 2015 20:40:43 GMT
Good post mumf. On the question of if clubs will come sniffing around Mark Hughes? Given the perception of MH's time at Man City, I think it's highly unlikely that one of the clubs with Champions League's aspirations would be interested. That'd only leave the likes of Everton, Villa and Newcastle who could come in. They'd all seem like a risky move for him at the moment, so hopefully we've got him for a while. Interest from Everton would be the biggest worry. Similar ownership model to Stoke with a patient chairman. Close to where LMH lives and, whether we like to admit it or not, a much bigger club than Stoke. I suspect that Kenwright is looking ruefully at his decision to hire Martinez rather than Hughes. Weren't they available at more or less the same time? Yes |
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Post by ukcstokie on Mar 5, 2015 21:15:56 GMT
Good post mumf. On the question of if clubs will come sniffing around Mark Hughes? Given the perception of MH's time at Man City, I think it's highly unlikely that one of the clubs with Champions League's aspirations would be interested. That'd only leave the likes of Everton, Villa and Newcastle who could come in. They'd all seem like a risky move for him at the moment, so hopefully we've got him for a while. Interest from Everton would be the biggest worry. Similar ownership model to Stoke with a patient chairman. Close to where LMH lives and, whether we like to admit it or not, a much bigger club than Stoke. I suspect that Kenwright is looking ruefully at his decision to hire Martinez rather than Hughes. Weren't they available at more or less the same time? No doubt that Everton are much bigger than us, and also Hughes played for them at the end of his career. |
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Post by stokiejoe on Mar 5, 2015 21:54:12 GMT
I think Hughes has enough sense to know when he is well off. Also close to his roots. Improving Stoke is a challenge that I believe he is more than up for, he will get the financial backing, he seems to have a plan and it's working. Don't think he is the type to walk away from a half finished project providing he is being backed.
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Post by chad on Mar 5, 2015 22:05:14 GMT
Almost certainly it's going to be our best top flight finish since Waddo, but for me we haven't yet beaten the first season we came up to the Prem. Every home game was pure theatre. The opposition usually didn't have a clue how to handle us at the Brit. Our crowd gained an international reputation for being the noisiest and most intimidating around and we confounded everybody who thought we'd go straight back down. And that was a lot of people. This is absolutely true. But we had been away for twenty odd years, nobody gave us a chance of staying up and it was us against the world. It was special, very special and it's hard to see how the joy of that first year can ever be repeated. I love what Hughsie is doing and long may it continue but that really was some season |
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Post by march4 on Mar 5, 2015 22:08:45 GMT
First season in the Prem remains the best of my 50+ years of watching Stoke. I think the FA Cup season comes next. Then I would put the 71/72 season.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 5, 2015 22:26:29 GMT
First season in the Prem remains the best of my 50+ years of watching Stoke. I think the FA Cup season comes next. Then I would put the 71/72 season. Fair comment ...for me it was winning the league cup in 72. The only major achievement in history...was it 102 years ....? Unbelievable.... Next comes promotion against Leicester ...I was there ...I think along with 17,000 others ... I was expecting more . I also enjoyed the Mark Stein era....Infact there has been nothing I have enjoyed more since . Bojan could be the caviar I Am looking for.... Still second behind Stein... |
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Post by ashleyscfc on Mar 6, 2015 4:18:36 GMT
Worrying how many on here are ending our season all ready. 10 games to go and millions left to play for. Plenty of time to slip down the table yet. We need to be on our metal every game.
Important for the summer is Hughes, nzonzi, Bego and then moses imo
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Post by clarkeda on Mar 6, 2015 6:36:53 GMT
Don't think he is the type to walk away from a half finished project providing he is being backed. The only problem with that is, he did exactly that with Fulham. |
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Post by dutchstokie on Mar 6, 2015 7:19:16 GMT
Worrying how many on here are ending our season all ready. 10 games to go and millions left to play for. Plenty of time to slip down the table yet. We need to be on our metal every game. Important for the summer is Hughes, nzonzi, Bego and then moses imo WIse words fella...wise words If we fluff our lines and lose a game we expected to win, we'll be back to square one on here - we know what we're like. Moses is shyte, Bardsleys wank yada yada yada 9th place wasnt secured until the last game of last season, so lets just focus on the next game and take things one step at a time. |
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Post by Lakeland Potter on Mar 6, 2015 7:50:28 GMT
Don't think he is the type to walk away from a half finished project providing he is being backed. The only problem with that is, he did exactly that with Fulham. He says he did it because he didn't feel their ambition matched his - but he has since admitted he made a mistake in leaving when he did. We all make mistakes - the important thing is to learn from them and not make the same mistake twice! The QPR experience will have shown him that even clubs prepared to spend big (very big in QPR's case) can get things horribly wrong. At the moment Stoke City are clearly moving in the right direction, hopefully he'll see the sense in sticking around to be a major part of that for the next few years. He certainly seems quite content to extend his stay and hopefully that contract will be signed within days or weeks. Obviously that is no guarantee that he would never jump ship but people are less inclined to jump ships which are clearly heading where they want to go and whose radar currently show no signs of heading for an iceberg! |
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Post by sufolkstokie on Mar 6, 2015 8:24:34 GMT
There is an ambition and belief shared by the management team and owners that in the not so distant future we will get in to Europe by means of league placement.
There is a steady improvement plan in place, not a all out next year plan and I am led to believe Sparky and his team have bought in to this 100%, as have the players
SJW said as much yesterday
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Post by foxysgloves on Mar 6, 2015 9:02:27 GMT
First season in the Prem remains the best of my 50+ years of watching Stoke. I think the FA Cup season comes next. Then I would put the 71/72 season. FA Cup final season edges it for me in pure enjoyment/awesomeness. But if we're talking quality of performance and overall achievement, so far, this season is tops. Our away results and our ability to handle injuries really show we're now a genuine force in the Premier League. |
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