These two teams have both played 34 games, from the opening 12 Stoke collected 21 points , Barnsley 8, from the second 11 starts, Stoke earned 14 points, Barnsley just 6, from the last 11 a respective 9 points each. 

 

City have fallen off alarmingly and it has been odd in some regard as they have struggled for the last two seasons, but I wrote for almost all of that about them having top 5-6 numbers through both campaigns, this time around they were in or around the top six early doors but with bottom half of the table statistical numbers ! They are now in 16th place, in no man's land once again, they are winless in six and have lost their last four. Head coach Michael O'Neill is quite good tactically, I have spoken of that in the past and I have seen him make some really astute "in play" adjustments, but it feels like his team have been treading water for three straight seasons and it is rare for a manager with his kind of record to see out three years, yet alone the full fourth year (20/23) of his contract, especially at a club used to top flight football (ten straight seasons prior to 2018/19). The squad seems a bit of a mess, with a LOT of loanees, some of whom are very long in the tooth, a number of players well into their 30's and three players were listed as having scans yesterday following the weekend game and there is talk of having to change formation today, but with no time to train accordingly.  There have been 2,000 posts on a Stoke city forum thread entitled "O'Neill out now " since the end of the transfer window and none in his favour for many weeks and he feels like a dead man walking .

 

It might not seem that Barnsley have been much better in recent weeks , but all 9 of those points collected in the last third of games played, came via three wins in their last five starts, including at home to 5th placed QPR and Middlesbrough who are 6th and the points earned have given them a chance of staying up, where once there was none . Should they win this evening, they will be three points from survival and they still have to host three fellow bottom six teams. Swedish/ Iranian head coach Poya Asbaghi has got a reaction out of his team and win or lose today, he and they could not ask for a better opponent right now.

 

 

 

Good luck !