Pulis rubbishes Cole rumours
Stoke City manager Tony Pulis has rubbished rumours linking the club with a move to sign West Ham United striker Carlton Cole.
Stoke have been linked with the England front man over the last couple of weeks but Pulis has said that the club will not risk their budget for the sake of any single player.
Stoke City are one of the few clubs in the Premier League who do not currently have any debts. They rely on a small and well organised squad and a passionate home crowd in order to win the points they need each season to survive in the top division of English football.
Pulis says the Stoke squad are in better shape than ever ahead of their third season in the Premier League. However, the standard is likely to be higher this season than anything they have experienced so far.
State of the team
The state of the Stoke City team is very good although there are improvements that could be made in all areas of the side. Pulis insists that the team is fitter and stronger than ever before and this should allow them to hit the ground running when the season starts.
The team has a core of players in each position. This means they can stay very compact and well organised. Any injuries to the side can be accounted for but if the back up players fall, then the problems will develop.
The club has managed to stay financially secure, which seems to be a luxury for most Premier League sides. The fans are being rewarded for their loyalty with good value ticket and merchandise prices.
Pulis said: "There's no truth in it whatsoever. They've got to fill their papers and fill their television programmes. I'll do all of my business with the clubs that I'm dealing with."
Higher standard
The standard of the Premier League this season is likely to be higher than it has ever been and this means that the standard of playing squads will also be higher.
Pulis has not ruled out bringing in players to improve the squad. There is still a month left of the transfer window and there is no need for Stoke to rush and risk bringing in the wrong players.
They have had a few key players out with injury since the back end of last season. This means when they are fit again it will be like getting new players who can go straight into the team with little difficulty.
Pulis added: "They're both Stoke City players [James Beattie and Dave Kitson] we still pay them and at the moment they're working as hard as the others to keep fit. If we need them for next season, we need them for next season."
Betting advice
Pulis has always been a heart on the sleeve type of manager and his shrewdness in the transfer market is nothing new. He believes that Stoke are good enough to do well in the Premier League with the squad they have and this should be praise for the club, not seen as something negative.
Stoke should survive comfortably and snap up the odds on them to do so if they are of good value. They could push for a top of the table positions but a lot depends on how they start the season and who they start it with.
Beattie scored a few goals last season and he will be a good candidate to be top scorer at the club by the end of the season. Have a punt on him to do this and he's also good enough to score at any time in any game.
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