Schu’s on front foot as Bae strike helps Potters stop rot

RELIEVED Stoke boss Steve Schumacher was delighted a few home truths paid dividends as the Potters secured a priceless win in their battle to avoid the drop.

Bae Jun-ho’s second goal in as many games and Lewis Baker’s strike did the trick as the Potters bounced back from two successive defeats to edge closer to safety.

“It was a performance we needed, we played really well,” said Schumacher, whose side had lost six of their last seven games.

“It’s been a tough run we’ve been on but we’ve had a few meetings this week and spoken about things where we need to get better. Everything we asked the players to do, we got. We were committed and gave the crowd something to shout about.”

Stoke keeper Daniel Iversen thwarted Riley Mcgree with a fine early save, while Middlesbrough shot-stopper Seny Dieng did well to block Niall Ennis’ header.

Bae broke the deadlock with a sweet strike before Baker’s deflected effort put the contest out of reach.

“I thought we looked dangerous and created some good opportunities, but the game didn’t end well,” admitted Boro boss Michael Carrick.

“I was disappointed with the second half, we didn’t chase the game very well. We can be a lot better than that, searching for a goal.

“We didn’t give ourselves enough chance.” STOKE: Iversen 7; Hoever 7, Wilmot 7, Rose 7, Gooch 7; Baker 8, Laurent 7, Burger 7 (Pearson (89) 6); Jun-ho 9, Ennis 7 (Campbell (82) 6), Manhoef 7 (Leris (76) 6) MIDDLESBROUGH: Dieng 6; Thomas 5 (Engel (64) 5), Clarke 5, Van den Berg 5, Ayling 5 (Dijksteel (72) 6); O’brien 6, Barlaser 6; Greenwood 6 (Azaz (65) 5), Mcgree 6 (Silvera (83) 6), Forss 6, Latte Lath 5 STAR MAN: Bae Jun-ho – The South Korean hitman bagged his second goal in as many games. REF: John Busby 7