West Brom v Stoke preview: Tony Pulis hoping to build on positive start

Tony Pulis will be hoping to build on the impressive start he has made as West Brom boss when his side take on Stoke City on Saturday.

The Manager of the Month for February has only suffered defeat twice in the league since taking over at The Hawthorns, and he remains on course to maintain his proud record of having never been relegated as a manager.

However, back-to-back defeats against local rivals Aston Villa has taken the shine off what has been a strong start to life in the West Midlands for Pulis.

Stoke are on course for a top-half finish after overcoming their inconsistency issues to muster three consecutive wins and climb up to eighth in the table.

Pulis will be given a great reception by the travelling Stoke fans after spending two successful spells in Staffordshire, but he will only be focused on three points come Saturday.

Team news

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West Brom have doubts over strikers Saido Berahino, Brown Ideye and Victor Anichebe for the clash against Stoke.

Berahino and Ideye have been playing through the pain barrier recently while Anichebe has a groin problem.

Winger Callum McManaman has a foot injury which Pulis has decided to rest for a few weeks.

Ryan Shawcross is available for Stoke after recovering from a back problem but Mark Hughes must make a decision whether to throw him straight back in as he has not featured since January.

Stephen Ireland is likely to sit out with a gashed leg while Philipp Wollscheid (groin) is struggling and Bojan Krkic and Peter Odemwingie (both knee) remain long-term absentees.

Opta facts

Saido Berahino has scored in three of his last four Premier League appearances.

Mame Biram Diouf has scored three goals in two Barclays Premier League appearances against West Brom.

The Potters have lost just one of the 11 Premier League meetings with the Baggies (W7 D3 L1), who have failed to score in eight of those encounters.

Stoke have won six and lost none of their last seven league visits to the Hawthorns winning all five visits in the Premier League.

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Six of the last eight Premier League goals Stoke have scored have been headers.

West Brom have kept five clean sheets in six games in all competitions at the Hawthorns under Tony Pulis.

Pulis had five seasons as boss of Stoke City in the Premier League, winning 29 per cent of his matches. He was replaced by Mark Hughes in May 2013 who has a 38% win rate.

Merson's prediction

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I don’t like going against Stoke. That result at Villa Park will have knocked West Brom sideways at Villa Park – it was a big football match that one. Stoke have got good players and are a decent team. They get the ball down and play. I think Steven N’Zonzi has been very good this season but they all have. They are a hard, hard team to beat.

PAUL PREDICTS: 1-1

Betting

West Brom are rated favourites at 13/10 with Sky Bet compared to Stoke’s odds of 21/10, with the draw priced at 11/5. The Baggies would surely secure their safety with another victory as they are currently 16/1 to go down, while Mark Hughes’ men are just 1/10 for another top-half finish. Saido Berahino (5/1) is closely followed by Brown Ideye (11/2) in the first goalscorer betting, while Peter Crouch is considered the visitors’ biggest threat at 13/2 to net first.