Premier League preview: Stoke v West Brom

14 March 2013 14:44

Stoke City will look to bounce back from the defeat at Newcastle when they tackle West Brom at the Britannia Stadium on Saturday.

The Potters went down 2-1 to Alan Pardew's men last Sunday, a 92nd-minute winner from Papiss Cisse meaning Stoke have only won twice in their past 17 matches.

That poor run of form in 2013 has seen Tony Pulis' men slump to 11th place in the table, while West Brom are eighth on 43 points, 10 ahead of their rivals.

But Stoke can look to a couple of positive aspects heading into the match, notably their reasonably sound home form in the league.

They have lost only twice at the Britannia this season but their lack of home goals (18) is the worst among clubs in the top half of the table.

Stoke will be without experienced defender Robert Huth, who is close to completing a three-match ban for violent conduct against Fulham at Craven Cottage last month.

The Baggies, meanwhile, have been less than impressive away from The Hawthorns, losing eight times on their travels and picking up just four wins.

But the west Midlands club had some good news ahead of the short trip to Stoke, with goalkeeper Boaz Myhill agreeing to a two-year contract extension, meaning he will stay at the club at least until the summer of 2016.

They will also have been buoyed by the 2-1 home win over high-flying Swansea, a win which moved them to eighth, just four points behind Arsenal.

Manager Steve Clarke has called on his squad to capitalise on last Saturday's 2-1 Swansea victory as the season enters its final phase.

"It was our ninth win at home – not many in our league can say they've done that – it was a great game and I hope the crowd enjoyed it," Clarke said.

"We said once we'd get to 40 we'd attack the rest of the season. We did that with 10 games to go and now we're on 43 with nine left.

"The effort and energy we had to show to stop Swansea as well was really good.

"If we play with that enthusiasm and quality for the next nine games I think the supporters can look forward to a good end to the season."