Stoke City

Ben Wilmot has said Stoke City are aiming for the play-offs this season following their strong start to the Championship season.

Stoke have won four and lost one to open the season and marked their return after the international break with a 1-0 win over Birmingham City. They currently sit second in the Championship just one point behind leaders Middlesbrough.

The Potters have not finished in the top six since the 2007-08 season, when they reached second and were promoted to the Premier League.

Since relegation from the top-flight in 2017-18, they have finished no higher than 14th.

"We came back to pre-season determined not to have a season like we did last year. Then I think as pre-season progressed, we realised we should be aiming even higher with the group that we've got," Wilmot told BBC Radio Stoke.

"Everybody's ambitions now are really play-offs and we all fully believe we can get there."

With club captain and fellow centre-back Ben Gibson still fighting for a return to the first XI, Wilmot has worn the armband.

The centre-back will lead his side through a crucial portion of the season as they look to pick up points in the run of games before the October international break.

Wilmot sees the next few weeks as an opportunity for Stoke to fully establish themselves as play-off contenders for the season.

"The start of the season's always really key because everybody's on a level playing field," he added. "So if you can get as many points as you can early it gives you a buffer later on."

Listen to the full interview with Ben Wilmot and more Stoke City on Sounds.

Mark Elliott
BBC Radio Stoke's Stoke City commentator

Image source, Rex Features

Stoke City fans got three points and an instant cult hero as the Potters made it four wins out of five against one of the Championship's hype teams in Birmingham City.

The points came courtesy of a brilliant first-half performance which was full of creativity, intensity and excitement, punctuated by a looping Bosun Lawal header for the only goal of the game and followed by a stubborn defensive stand after the break.

It was Lawal's ninth career goal and, given his stature, it was more than a little bit surprising to hear him say after that it was the first header he's ever scored.

Lawal was immense in both boxes and continued a run of excellent performances at centre-back which have left two of the club's most eye-catching summer signings in Maksym Talovierov and Ashley Phillips struggling for game time.

Defensively, Stoke have strength in depth in their squad to rival any club in the league.

Another summer signing, Lamine Cisse, made his debut off the bench to further strengthen the attack and Sorba Thomas continued his fine start to the season, well supported by Million Manhoef and Bae Junho, who made an impact off the bench.

It was Junho's replacement in the starting 11 that really got the crowd going at the bet365 though.

Before the international break, newly acquired Tomas Rigo was presented to the crowd in jeans the size of a wedding marquee and knitwear that would be the envy of any grunge frontman of the early 1990s.

His swagger and bleach blonde hair whet the appetite, as did reports of his influence as Slovakia beat Germany and Luxembourg last week.

The Stoke fans loved his work-rate. He covered a huge amount of ground, was physical and played with a personality that matched his pre-game attire.

Mark Robins says he's a "proper footballer" too, with good technical ability and vision.

Withdrawn in the second half, his own name, sung from the stands by a crowd loving every second of this start to the season, may still be ringing around his ears.

Stoke are a good side. Four wins out of five has fans resetting their ambitions for the next nine months - and rightly so.

Naz Premji
BBC Final Score reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Stoke City are looking up again after many years at the wrong end of the Championship and Mark Robins has the Potters believing that the good times are coming back.

One player who has been superb since arriving at the bet365 Stadium is keeper Viktor Johansson.

The Swedish shot-stopper, who is a product of the Aston Villa and Hammerby academies, made his name at Rotherham United where all his managers described him as "the best keeper in the league".

He joined Stoke last year and he was again solid in their 1-0 victory over Birmingham on Saturday.

The fans I spoke to are in no doubt that "he is a Premier League stopper stuck in the Championship and if we don't go up he will go".

Those fans are quietly hopeful that this could be their season and if it is they will hope Big Viktor is helping them in the top league.

Stoke City boss Mark Robins says his side need to be "more ruthless" despite taking a 1-0 victory over Birmingham City in the Championship on Saturday.

"I thought we were really good – it was brilliant, inside the stadium it was really noisy. I thought we started off really well, high intensity, and I thought we carried that through, particularly in the first half, I thought we were outstanding," Robins told BBC Radio Stoke.

"In the second half, things changed a little bit. Turnover of possession was a little bit more frequent, but that was when both sides start to tire, they made plenty of changes, we made a few changes – we made some wrong decisions at times.

"The only criticism I've got is we get the ball around the edge of their penalty area, we break away and we are doing that to create the space to shoot and we don't – we turn it down. It becomes very frustrating, we can shoot, we've got players who can score goals. Move the ball, find the space, shoot.

"We could have had another goal, maybe two, we've been a bit unfortunate but we have to be more ruthless there to take the game away from them – (but) really pleasing with the clean sheet and the noise inside the stadium was incredible."

Listen to the full post-match interview with Robins and more Stoke City content on BBC Sounds.

Image source, Getty Images

Stoke City boss Mark Robins has said the international break has been "strange" with players coming back later into the week.

Stoke had 14 players called up for international duty which has made planning and preparation for Saturday's game against Birmingham City (15:00 BST) additionally challenging.

Robins' side have started the season with three wins from their opening four games, their only defeat coming in the most recent fixture against West Bromwich Albion.

"There's been a mixture of rest and recovery and running repairs and training, I gave them a few days off at the start and a few days off at the end and worked in the middle which generally works OK," Robins told BBC Radio Stoke.

"I managed to get work into the ones that are remaining, there's almost 50% of the squad away on international duty and at various contributions for each national team and for each individual, so we try and factor that into what happens this week.

"Clearly it's punctuated because they don't come back in until later in the week so it's strange because you need to get the work into them, they need to do the physical stuff.

"That's what it's been like, and now we're working into what is a really tough opponent with Birmingham City."

Robins has praised the work conducted by Birmingham City head coach Chris Davies.

Davies joined the Blues in June 2024 and led them to a record-breaking season in League One finishing with 111 points.

Birmingham have won two and drawn one of their opening four games with their first defeat coming in their last game against Leicester at the King Power Stadium.

"I think it's well documented, what they're trying to do with the stadium that they're talking about building and the rejuvenation of that club is clear for everyone to see and he's been a catalyst for that in the main role," Robins said.

"It's a tough game, they're very aggressive, they work really hard, and they've got some real talented players in the team so, you're under no illusions, it's a tough game but a brilliant game for us to restart with."

Listen to the full interview and more on BBC Sounds.

Stoke City will take on Birmingham City on Saturday (15:00 BST) with the Potters in their best season-opening form since 2021, when they won three and drew one Championship game.

Birmingham City will look to return to winning ways after losing 2-0 at Leicester City before the international break.

• Stoke City have won only one of their last eight league games against Birmingham City (D4 L3); a 3-1 away win in December 2023.

• Birmingham City are unbeaten in their last four away league games against Stoke City (W2 D2), winning on each of their previous two trips.

• After losing 1-0 to West Bromwich Albion last time out, Stoke are looking to avoid successive home league defeats for the first time since September 2024.

• Birmingham's 2-0 defeat at Leicester City last time out ended a run of 16 successive league games unbeaten (W13 D3). They haven't lost successive league matches since April 2024.

• Stoke's Sorba Thomas has played more passes into the opposition box than any other Championship player this season (45), while only Sheffield Wednesday's Barry Bannan and Southampton's Ryan Manning (12 each) have created more chances than the Stoke winger (11).

Image source, Getty Images

Middlesbrough boss Rob Edwards, Coventry City's Frank Lampard, West Bromwich Albion's Ryan Mason and Stoke City's Mark Robins have been nominated for the Championship's manager of the month award for August.

Edwards will be a strong contender as Boro occupy top spot after an unblemished winning start to the season, while Mason has enjoyed an unbeaten start in his first permanent managerial role with his Baggies side in second.

Lampard is also recognised as Coventry are yet to lose, while influential Sky Blues midfielder Victor Torp has earned a nomination for player of the month for his four goals in four matches.

Stoke City have another nominee in new signing Sorba Thomas, who has two goals and three assists across his four games, with the Potters who lie third under Robins.

Meanwhile, Norwich City striker Josh Sargent and Bristol City full-back Ross McCrorie round out the player of the month nominations after strong starts to their respective seasons.

Sargent has found the target five times in four games, while McCrorie delivered three assists and scored one goal in August.

The winners will be announced on Friday.

"They've set standards in how they've got to go about things for the next few games. They've got to play with the same level of intensity that they've shown, the same tempo, the same incisiveness and if they do that they'll probably pick up a fair few points."

On the latest episode of A Cold Wet Tuesday Night, Lucas Yeomans, Mark Elliott and Ben Rowley discuss expectations for Stoke City following their excellent start to the Championship season, their expectations for some of the players and give their predictions for the Potters' upcoming fixtures.

Listen to the full episode of A Cold Wet Tuesday Night on BBC Sounds

Stoke City right-back Junior Tchamadeu has played every minute of the Championship season for the Potters so far and is pleased with the team's start.

"It's given us a lot of confidence ... we'll try and continue and keep that form starting from next game," he told BBC Radio Stoke.

After finishing just two points above the relegation zone last season, boss Mark Robins signed 10 players in the summer transfer window, while 12 departed, and the new-look squad have taken three wins from four games to begin the league campaign.

"I put it down to togetherness of the group and how we started pre-season," Tchamadeu said.

"Everyone's on the same wavelength and everyone's willing to work for each other, and that's the biggest thing for a team to perform at a high level."

Stoke's new signings included Wales international Sorba Thomas, Manchester City academy loanee Divin Mubama and Aaron Cresswell, who boasts 10 years of Premier League experience with West Ham United.

"Having them has been a huge lift to the group and they're all big characters," Tchamadeu said.

"We've got a lot of game-changers that come on to the pitch. It's good to have that solid competition in and around the group, and it keeps us all wanting to push on and keep playing well."

After the transfer of right-back Lynden Gooch to League One Huddersfield Town, Tchamadeu is the only senior right-back at Stoke and it is the acknowledgement of the fact that has motivated him to consistently put in good performances.

"I believe the gaffer has a lot of trust in me, and he's shown that since he's come in. So it's down to me to repay that faith the club's shown in me," he said

"As much as I'm the only right-back, if I'm not living up to it and performing to the standard I know I can, it doesn't help the team and I'm not helping myself as well."

Stoke host Birmingham City on 13 September (15:00 BST).

Listen to the full interview with Junior Tchamadeu and more Stoke City on Sounds.

Image source, Getty Images

West Bromwich Albion and Stoke City have been fined £5,000 each after a mass brawl during their Championship meeting last month.

Both clubs were charged by the Football Association with failing to control their players after a "mass confrontation" which happened around the hour mark of their match on 30 August.

The Baggies won the match 1-0 to move above the Potters into second place in the Championship.

The clubs admitted the charge and accepted the standard penalty.

Image source, Getty Images

Stoke City midfielder Tomas Rigo scored a last-minute winner for Slovakia against Luxembourg as they remained top of their World Cup qualifying group.

The 23-year-old struck in the final seconds of the game at Stade de Luxembourg as Slovakia won 1-0 to follow up their opening win in Germany and maintain their 100% start to their qualifying campaign.

Sunday's goal is his second at senior international level in his seventh appearance having scored on his debut in a 4-0 friendly win over San Marino in June 2024.

Rigo joined Stoke from Banik Ostrava for an undisclosed fee on 30 August and could make his debut for the Potters when they return to Championship action at home to Birmingham City on Saturday, 13 September (15:00 BST).

Forest Green Rovers have signed Stoke City forward Adriel Walker on a month-long youth loan.

The 19-year-old joined the Potters in February 2025 after nine years at West Bromwich Albion's academy.

Walker has yet to play a senior game in his career.

"Adriel is an exciting forward who has started the season in fine form," Forest Green manager Robbie Savage said.

"He's quick, dynamic, and has an eye for goal.

"We're a club who love giving opportunities to young players and, given a couple of recent injuries in the forward line, it was important that we were active in getting somebody with quality to add to the ranks."

Stoke City sporting director Jonathan Walters is satisfied with the state of the first-team squad after making 10 new signings during the summer transfer window.

Transfers into the club included Aaron Cresswell from Premier League West Ham, Wales international Sorba Thomas and French forward Lamine Cisse from Bastia.

"We mainly hit all our main targets and players that we targeted with the recruitment team, with the coaching staff," Walters told BBC Radio Stoke.

The former Stoke player praised the efficiency of his recruitment team with the bulk of the Potters' work conducted in July and early August.

As rivals scrambled around to get deals done, midfielder Tomas Rigo was the only senior addition made in the final two weeks of the window with the Slovakian signed from Banik Ostrava on August 30.

"To get [signings] in early helps them settle, whether they're moving from a different country, whether it settles the family," Walters added.

"There's a lot of things that go into it to have a player settle at the club but then get to know everyone here get them integrated into how we train, how we play and the coaches always want them early.

"[We considered] how they fit into how we play, is there a space for them in the team, do we need that type of player and [could they help with] shaping where we want to see the club evolve."

One such player that fit that criteria is returning midfielder Steven Nzonzi, who last played for Stoke between 2012-2015 making 120 appearances, alongside former team-mate Walters. He re-signed this summer from Iran Pro League side Sepahan.

"Steven obviously knows the club very well, he feels like he has unfinished business and the club is his home," he said.

"Having a World Cup winner in and around the club, [brings] a standard. Whether that be doing things right, eating right, living right, rehab, gym, how you train, what you demand. There's lots of things he adds to the squad.

"It's really important that we build a really strong dressing room that allows people to challenge each other but does it in the right way [with] hunger and desire to really push on as a group."

Listen to the full interview with Jonathan Walters and more Stoke City on Sounds.

Mark Elliott
Stoke City commentator for BBC Radio Stoke

Image source, Getty Images

Mark Robins described the defeat by West Bromwich Albion as "frustrating" and it's hard to disagree.

Stoke could have had penalty of goals. They hit the post through Divin Mubama and saw Bae Jun-ho fire wide when well placed. They probably deserved at least a point.

It took a rare error from Viktor Johansson to gift Albion a goal and whilst they always looked a threat, it wasn't a game in which the Swedish goalkeeper was overly busy.

The same could probably be said about his opposite number Josh Griffiths, and the biggest takeaway from this game and the first four games of the season is that games involving teams at the right end of the Championship will be tight and like this one, could go any one of three ways.

West Brom looked like a good second tier side who are well drilled, competitive and robust. Stoke look like a good and equally competitive second tier side too.

There will be countless close games for the Potters this season as we saw at Southampton and at home to Derby when Stoke came from behind to win.

Even Sheffield Wednesday made a game of the contest at Hillsborough which Stoke eventually won comfortably and they were meant to be the exception given their troubles off the field.

If Stoke can win anywhere near three out of every four matches for the rest of the season, and look as competitive as they did against the Baggies in the games they lose, it'll be a great season.

The performance in defeat and the impeding addition to the matchday squad of new signings Tomas Rigo, Lamine Cisse and Steven Nzonzi suggests the unbeaten run may be over but optimism around the club and the fan base should very much remain.

Halifax Town have signed centre-back Jake Griffin on loan from Stoke City until 27 September.

The 19-year-old has never made a senior appearance for the Potters but had a spell on loan at Brackley Town in National League North last season.

Stoke City manager Mark Robins insists "nobody is getting carried away" as they aim to maintain their 100% start to the Championship season against unbeaten West Bromwich Albion on Saturday.

Robins made 10 changes as the Potters lost 3-0 at home to League One side Bradford City in the EFL Cup on Tuesday.

They will be looking to bounce back against West Brom and make it four wins out of four heading into the international break.

"The level of focus is there and it is really important," Robins told BBC Radio Stoke. "It is really key to maintain that good start that we have had, and that is all it is - nobody is getting carried away.

"We just need to maintain that concentration and really focus on us and make sure we carry out the plan. It will be near enough a full house, which is fantastic at this stage, and those expectation levels go up alongside it.

"It is really important that we keep our feet on the ground and understand what it takes to win football matches or put in performances that warrant winning matches, against a really good West Brom side that is under new management and that has fundamentally changed, because they have brought in a lot of really talented boys, albeit they may lose two over the next 24 hours or so."

Stoke and Middlesbrough are the only Championship sides to win all three of their opening games, and are only separated by goal difference.

Following their cup defeat Robins has called on the fans to "maintain their support".

"The support have to maintain, so when things don't go as well as we hoped, just stick together and get us through that and help us over those periods because it will happen in a season.

"It is difficult; it is not going to be 46 games where everyone is going to roll over and we will win them all. We know it is going to be tough, but also we can't put barriers there for ourselves."

Listen to the full interview with Mark Robins and more on BBC Sounds

Early table-toppers Stoke will seek to keep their perfect start to the Championship season going as they host West Bromwich Albion on Saturday lunchtime (12:30 BST).

Mark Robins' men have scored eight goals across their opening three wins and host the unbeaten Baggies who saw their own perfect start ended by a home draw against Portsmouth last Saturday, a game in which head coach Ryan Mason was shown a red card which will keep him in the stands for the trip to the Potteries.

• Stoke City have failed to win any of their past six league games against West Brom (D3 L3), losing this exact fixture 2-1 last season.

• West Brom have won four of their past six away league games against Stoke City (D1 L1), three of which have come via a one-goal margin.

• Stoke have won each of their opening three league games this season and will be looking to win their opening four for the first time since 1998-99 in the third tier.

• After remaining unbeaten in the Championship so far this season (W2 D1), West Brom will be looking to win three of their opening four league games of a campaign for the second consecutive season.

• Stoke will be looking to win successive home league games for just the second time since the start of last season after beating Derby 3-1 in their last outing at the bet365 Stadium.

"He looks like he has found a new home and it is really exciting. It was asked last week if he was a proper Stoke winger and it looks like it, doesn't it? He loves to take on his full-back, gets crosses into the box and makes things happen.

"If I was winger coming through at Stoke, I would be thinking 'I want to play like him'."

Matt Sandoz joins Pete Smith to discuss Sorba Thomas and Mark Robins' media conference ahead of their home fixture to West Bromwich Albion.

Can Stoke go into the international break top of the Championship?

Listen to the full episode and more on BBC Sounds.