Stoke City manager, http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Tony-c35440 Pulis, believes his team needs to improve considerably, if they are to meet their Premier League targets this term.
The Potters secured a fortunate point from their last league fixture against the current title holders, Manchester City.
The game, which ended in a 1-1 draw, saw http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Peter-Crouch-c29741 handle the ball a couple of times before slotting the ball past the goalkeeper, to secure an unlikely lead for his side.
However, http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Roberto-c31294 Mancini’s men hit back through Javier Garcia, who restored parity in the second half.
For a considerable portion of the game, Stoke look lacklustre and never threatened to squeeze out a win. At times, they were guilty of giving away possession cheaply, and were fortunate to survive a flurry of attacks from the blue Manchester side.
The Potters are yet to record their first win in the league this term, having drawn all four of their matches so far.
Assessing the performance of his team, the boss at the Britannia Stadium observed that they need to up their game by a couple of notches. However, he revealed that the team were gelling well following the return of the players from international duty, and
it was only a matter of time before they hit the top gear.
“I think we will get better. It will be nice to have them next week and work with them,” he told the reporters.
“We still need to retain our commitment and organisation but we have to retain the ball better when we do get it. There were times when we were giving it away too cheaply.”
The game against City also saw the Potters latest acquisition, http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Michael-Owen-c25355, make his debut appearance for Stoke, coming on as a second half substitute.
The club signed the English International on a one-year deal, in the week next to the one in which the transfer window got closed.
Speaking of his status in the squad, the Welshman pointed out that the striker needs to get some match practice, before getting a regular starting-eleven berth.
“He needs a lot more football. He has done a lot of work by himself, fitness-wise, but playing games is a lot different from just running,” he added.
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