IT COULD BE US, SAYS COATES

[oatcakemate]

Chairman Peter Coates believes it is now a five-horse race between Stoke City and their four nearest rivals for automatic promotion to the Premier League.

And he reckons manager Tony Pulis is the man to succeed where Lou Macari would have done 13 years ago if he hadn't left Stoke for Celtic.

"Anything can happen in football and I'm certainly not taking anything for granted," said Coates, "but it's looking like the current top five are the ones to watch because there's now a bit of a gap between fifth and sixth.



"It's very competitive, but we feel we have a very good chance of being there at the death.

"We are getting more attention from the outside world and that has to be good for the club, but there's no way we will get carried away."

Stoke last reached the play-offs during Macari's second stint as manager in 1996, but Coates believes the Scotsman would have piloted City to the top flight in his first spell had he not returned home to manage Celtic.

"I always felt I was unlucky in losing Lou Macari - it's the biggest slice of bad luck I've had as chairman, added Coates.

"We were on a roll at that time and had he stayed he would have got us promoted, but it didn't happen.

"We now have another excellent manager, though, and I wouldn't change him for anything. He's done a superb job and this is the best team we've had for a long time."

Coates insisted there was no wish to say 'I told you so' to those fans who rounded on him when he brought Pulis back for a second spell as manager 20 months ago.

"No, I don't think in terms of I made the right call. I'm just pleased we are doing well. I was always confident he could be good for us," added Coates.

"I'm pleased for our supporters as well that we are doing well. They have been very vocal, as we heard on Tuesday, and always get behind the team. We all have the same hopes and aspirations for this football club."

Coates's company bet365 have Stoke at 4/6 to secure their place in the Championship play-offs.

Favourites are Charlton on 4/7, followed by Stoke and Bristol City on 4/6. Then come West Brom and Watford on 6/4, presumably because they are still favourites to bag the two automatic promotion places.

DANNY Pugh's one-match suspension has been confirmed for Saturday week against Ipswich, while Ricardo Fuller and Glenn Whelan face two-match bans if they receive their 10th bookings of the season before the April 13 amnesty date

[Deleted]

E I E I E I O……….. ;D

[mickmills]

So does the National Lottery advertising - but it hasn't been yet.

What else would a bookie say though?

Still better odds than lottery and just trying to stay calm

GOARN STOKE!

[albanianstokie]

All good things said, maybe need a couple of loans though to cover poss suspensions.

[mcf]

He's got some fucking cheek though

The biggest slice of luck was Macari - not first choice and quite unbelievable how it turned out.

Luck had nothing to do with him selling Pesch.

[Not_Nick_H]

mcf said:

He's got some fucking cheek though

The biggest slice of luck was Macari - not first choice and quite unbelievable how it turned out.

Luck had nothing to do with him selling Pesch.

mcf - you beat me to it. I was going to point that little (ahem) "inaccuracy" out.

[devsad]

mcf,

He's talking about Macari's first stint - not the second when we got to the playoffs.

Pesch was crap anyway imho