CHAMPIONSHIP

AN entertaining draw at an in-form side that came with a sense of déjà vu. PETER SMITH looks at the talking points from Villa Park.

STOKE SCORING GOALS…

BUT NEED WINNERS IT is the first time in 20 years that Stoke have scored two or more goals for five consecutive league games (the last game of 1997/98 and first four of the Brian Little era, if you’re wondering). If you’re thinking about Millwall next weekend, Stoke haven’t done it for six since the autumn of 1958 when Johnny King and Dennis Wilshaw were on fire. They have only ever had 17 longer unbeaten runs in the league (it’s now nine games without defeat). And they have only ever gone longer without defeat on the road in the league (now eight) three times, two of which ended in promotion, the other in play-off agony (11 under Alan Durban in 1979, 12 under Lou Macari in 1993 and 10 under Gudjon Thordarson in 2000). Unfortunately, only three of Stoke’s last nine games have ended in wins. Three of the last five have ended 2-2, despite Stoke being in front in all three heading into the dying stages. It is a division below where Stoke started 2018 but a welcome difference for a side that came into the year punch drunk. A bit more ruthlessness at both ends in those games and Stoke would already be in the top six instead of five points behind – but it is a platform… if they can take advantage.

STOKE SCORE A PENALTY!

NOW TO SAVE ONE… BENIK Afobe has now scored twice from the spot this season, either side of that miss at West Brom and Saido Berahino’s miss against Blackburn. It needed to be placed well in the corner as Orjan Nyland dived the right way, hopefully lifting the curse once and for all. Jack Butland couldn’t stop Tammy Abraham’s penalty either but he hasn’t stopped one since that brilliant shootout save against Eden Hazard and Stoke haven’t stopped a penalty since Thomas Sorensen kept out Loic Remy in a 5-1 Boxing Day defeat at Newcastle in 2013 – unless you count Leighton Baines, whose penalty hit the post and went in off Shay Given’s head in 2016, or Frank Lampard knocking the rebound past Asmir Begovic in 2014. That’s 27 in a row in the league, including those two above. And even Remy had scored within a couple of minutes anyway. Ouch.