POTTERS LEFT KICKING
STOKE City were their own worst enemy as they contrived to lose a game they should have won comfortably – at a Bristol City side whose confidence has been brittle.
They hit the woodwork twice, had a couple of penalty claims waved away, a strong shout for a red card turned down and more than enough chances to win this game and the next one.
They had possession and territory and, for large parts, purpose – but, not for the first time this season, didn’t take their chances and gifted one all too easily at the other end.
Stoke’s massed defenders coming back to deal with a long throw shouldn’t have let the ball get anywhere near Tyreeq Bakinson to break the deadlock, let alone give him enough space to get a clear shot away at close range.
There were more opportunities to at least bag an equaliser but in the end it was Stoke who were reduced to 10 men when Joe Allen was sent off for two cynical fouls to stop breakaways.
With the injury room full, having two players serving suspension – Sam Surridge is still out – presents another problem. And Stoke will still be kicking themselves as they mull it over.
Michael O’neill sent out an unchanged XI from the one which started the 2-0 victory over Peterborough, with Josh Tymon passing a fitness test on a tight hamstring. But if Stoke had won while performing below bar at the weekend, they came out flying at Ashton Gate and could have scored twice in the first five minutes.
Steven Fletcher’s header against the post and Jacob Brown’s saved one-on-one were just the start of a wave of attacks that should have seen the visitors out of sight in the first half – but instead they went in trailing.
There was a decent advantage played by referee Oliver Langford for the first move, when Brown was taken out by Callum O’dowda – who was booked when play stopped – and Tymon dashed into the area, staying on his feet among
clumsy defending when others might have tried to claim a penalty.
The ball was worked back for Mario Vrancic to cross and Fletcher knocked it back past Dan Bentley but against the left upright.
Brown then beat the defensive line to rush behind only for the ball to stay on his left side and he lacked conviction as a shot was saved by the keeper.
Vrancic seemed to have the ball on a string at times and he surprised everyone when he ignored Tymon in space but wide to slip a delightful sliderule pass behind again for Brown, whose touch took him wide.
Another Vrancic killer pass saw Tymon just off – and Tymon’s pass inside was dummied by Romaine Sawyers to find Joe Allen in space to pick his shot, which he sent to space.
Tymon was gathering momentum and he teased Alex Scott on the left before nutmegging him, dashing forward and delivering a fine cross for Fletcher to beat the keeper again and hammer a header against the bar.
Bristol City were limited in chances in response – the biggest coming with a claim for a penalty when Leo Ostigard dived to block a cross and the ball rebounded off his foot to hit his hand and go out for a corner. Until they took the lead. It was the 38th minute when Tomas Kalas looped in a long throw and Stoke missed two chances to clear, the first and second ball from a flick on, and Bakinson was too free to poke home from six yards.
There was some claim that Kalas should have been pulled up for a foul throw but Stoke, who had defended their box reasonably well over the previous three matches, should have just done their jobs. An embarrassing goal to concede – and the irony of Stoke letting in anything from a long throw is not lost on any opposition supporter.
So a new test for Stoke, who have had to respond
to dropping points from winning positions this season.
There was half a sighter almost immediately when Sawyers slipped a pass for Allen to run onto in the area. There was a brief moment when it looked like Allen was going to hit it first time and he was gobbled up by defenders as he instead tried to bring it under control.
Fletcher span and rattled a long ranger too close to Bentley and a Tymon cross somehow squirmed through for well-placed Sawyers, who wasn’t expecting it.
Brown took a whack in the nose that left him needing to play on with cotton wool up a nostril and Vrancic also needed treatment after being caught by a late lunge from Scott, who was fortunate to get away with a yellow card.
There was a penalty claim too when Chester took a shove in the back as he attacked a Vrancic set piece and the pressure cranked up a notch. Chester should have buried a fierce Vrancic corner that whistled past his forehead.
O’neill turned to Tyrese Campbell, on for Brown, and Alfie Doughty, on for
Vrancic, to try to find a way through in the final 20 minutes. Tymon moved into midfield while Doughty took his place on the left.
And it was Doughty who had a clear chance, sprinting behind only to be thwarted by Bentley and converging defenders when it looked he was certain to score.
And so too Campbell, who darted down the inside left channel – a little wider than on Saturday – and fired a shot into the side netting just before it was shown there would be nine minutes of injury time.
But Bristol City defended deeper and deeper and Allen was shown a second yellow card when he launched into a foul to stop a counter. A frustrating end to frustrating night.