Calamitous defending made a mockery of Stoke’s recent clean sheet run as they fell to an embarrassing 3-0 home defeat to Blackburn. Stoke had a lot of possession but couldn’t turn that into danger while Blackburn retained a danger on the break and at set pieces. McNally couldn’t control a cross from Enda Stevens at the back post after Gayle and Scott Wharton had collided at the front. Then Ben Pearson tried to claim a free-kick that wasn’t mid-way inside the Blackburn half and, when the visitors got on the ball, they took advantage of Stoke’s defensive line straying past the half-way line. 4Rose: Needed to make the most of his pace in some recovery defending when Stoke couldn’t deal with balls over the top.

Source: Express February 11, 2024 05:34 UTC