After a miserable season, which saw manager Tony Pulis lose his job, striker Peter Crouch believes that the club can turn the corner by managing to win a trophy in the upcoming season. Stoke have come close to winning a trophy as they have reached the final of competitions like the FA Cup in the past.
However, the optimism after the initial years of spending in the Premier league under Pulis has been waning in recent years. Stoke managed to wins only three matches in the league last season and they were almost relegated last season.
However, poor results for the bottom teams coupled with a few draws helped them finish in the 13th position at the end of the season. As a result of the huge criticism received from the fans for the poor football, Pulis left the job with mutual consent. Peter Crouch, who was one of the big-money signings made by the former manager Pulis, has said that the poor season was result of the transaction made by the manager to introduce an attacking style football.
Crouch reckons that there is no reason why Stoke city can match the achievements of Wigan, who managed in the FA Cup against all odds last season. Wigan beat Manchester city in the final of the competition to lift the trophy for the first time in their history.
“If you want to compete for the top ten and win trophies then you have to evolve, we’ve got better players in than we ever had and it may be a transition period, but hopefully we can turn it on next year. Look what Wigan have achieved [winning the FA Cup], and if they can achieve it so can Stoke City. We got to a final a couple of years ago and to go on to win a trophy would be fantastic for the club,” said Crouch.