SM
Liverpool vs. Man Utd: 12 hrs 6 mins
Upcoming predictions and previews
Collect News Data
SL
EFL Cup | First Round
Aug 10, 2021 at 7.45pm UK
Bet365 Stadium
FT

Stoke
2 - 1
Fleetwood

Surridge (45'), Souttar (77')
FT(HT: 1-0)
Chester (90+4' og.)
Batty (33'), Hill (65'), Matete (69')

Preview: Stoke City vs. Fleetwood Town - prediction, team news, lineups

:Headline: Preview: Stoke City vs. Fleetwood Town - prediction, team news, lineups:
Sports Mole previews Tuesday's EFL Cup clash between Stoke City and Fleetwood Town, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.
Sports Mole

After their winning start to the Championship season on Saturday, Stoke City will play host to Fleetwood Town in an EFL Cup first-round clash on Tuesday.

The Potters secured a narrow victory in an entertaining encounter with Reading, while their visitors suffered a defeat in their opening game of the League One campaign last time out.


Match preview

After an disappointing end to the 2020-21 season, resulting in a drop to 14th place, Stoke City headed into this Championship campaign with the aim of pushing for the top six.

They got off to a strong start on Saturday, taking three points from a dramatic clash with Reading.

Nick Powell opened the scoring for the Potters in the 25th minute, only for John Swift to equalise a minute later before Jacob Brown immediately restored the lead in to cap off an eye-catching spell of just four minutes.

Reading would again draw level on the hour mark through Liam Moore, and the game looked set to end level until Sam Surridge hit the winner with five minutes to go, sealing all three points for his side.

Michael O'Neill will certainly be pleased with his side's start as they hope to build a winning run to establish themselves in the top six, but for now, the Staffordshire outfit will turn their attention to the cup, as they go in search of a second straight win to book their spot in the second round.

They take on a Fleetwood town side who will look to bounce back from a disappointing defeat on the opening day of the League One season on Saturday.

Simon Grayson's men faced a difficult test on the opening day, as they played host to Danny Cowley's Portsmouth.

The game remained goalless until the 60th minute, when Lee Brown put the visitors ahead, and Fleetwood would not find an equaliser, falling to a 1-0 defeat as a result.

After reaching the playoffs in the 2019-20 season, the Cod Army had a disappointing campaign last year, finishing in 13th spot with just a 13-point gap between themselves and the relegation zone.

They will hope to bounce back this year and battle for a top-half finish, with Tuesday providing a chance to build confidence with what would be a statement victory over a heavily-fancied Championship side.

Stoke City form (all competitions):
  • W

Fleetwood Town form (all competitions):
  • L

Team News

Stoke City have seen a major change of players over the summer, with the likes of Bruno Martins Indi, John Obi Mikel, Kevin Wimmer, Ryan Woods and Nathan Collins all leaving permanently while midfielder Peter Etebo and forward Benik Afobe have departed on loan.

O'Neill responded with several notable additions, bringing in forward Sam Surridge from AFC Bournemouth and defender Ben Wilmot from Watford alongside Mario Vrancic from Norwich to boost their midfield ranks.

Surridge hit the winning goal off the bench on Saturday, and he should be handed his first competitive start in the upcoming cup clash, while O'Neill will likely make further changes to take a closer look at more members of his squad.

Star forward Tyrese Campbell should be the only absentee, as he remains out of action with an injury that saw him miss a large portion of last season.

Grayson also made plenty of additions to his side over the summer, bringing in youngsters Ryan Edmondson and Callum Morton on loan alongside established league stars such as Max Clark, Tom Clarke and Anthony Pilkington.

Jordan Rossiter and Harrison Biggins will likely continue to partner up in midfield with both Paul Coutts and Mark Duffy having left the club.

Stoke City possible starting lineup:
Bursik; Smith, Wilmot, Souttar, Fox; Vrancic, Clucas, Doughty; Ince, Surridge, Brown

Fleetwood Town possible starting lineup:
Cairns; Clarke, Hill, Andrew; Halliday, Biggins, Rossiter, Clark; Edmondson, Morton, Morris


We say: Stoke City 2-0 Fleetwood Town

The Potters should rotate their squad to an extent, but they will still have more than enough to get past Fleetwood on Tuesday.

The squad players will be keen to impress to push their bid for a starting spot going forward, meaning they should put up an impressive display and brush the visitors aside.



Top tip

Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting over 1.5 goals in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.Over 1.5:data



body check tags ::

Previews by email

Click here to get Sports Mole's daily email of previews and predictions for every major game!


amp_article__458683 : Collect and Make Data not in DataBase  : 
last updated article - 2024-06-05 12:56:11:
html db last update - 2024-06-05 12:56:11 :

ex - 7200 : read : write cache and make html
Read more!
Share this article now:


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
AL
Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!
Recommended Next on SM
Michael O'Neill hails players as Stoke start season with win over Reading
Out-of-contract star made an offer? Reds finally propose new deal for key player
Haaland hits brace and Savinho shines as Man City put West Ham to the sword
Saturday's Championship predictions including Hull vs. Leeds
Premier League Table
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Leeds UnitedLeeds26158348192953
2Burnley26141023192252
3Sheffield UnitedSheff Utd26166436171952
4Sunderland25138438221647
5Middlesbrough26118743321141
6West Bromwich AlbionWest Brom26913432211140
7Blackburn RoversBlackburn2511682823539
8Bristol City2691073330337
9Watford25114103536-137
10Sheffield WednesdaySheff Weds2610793840-237
11Norwich CityNorwich269984337636
12Swansea CitySwansea2697103030034
13Millwall257992423130
14Preston North EndPreston2661282834-630
15Coventry CityCoventry2678113437-329
16Queens Park RangersQPR2561182733-629
17Oxford UnitedOxford Utd2577112840-1228
18Derby CountyDerby2676133135-427
19Stoke CityStoke2669112432-827
20Luton TownLuton2574142642-1625
21Portsmouth2358103040-1023
22Hull City2658132536-1123
23Cardiff CityCardiff2558122540-1523
24Plymouth ArgylePlymouth2548132453-2920
Scroll for more - Tap for full version


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
AL
Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!

Loading ...

Failed to load data.

history www

Guardiola breaks PL record - but Man City are "absolutely not" back to their best

1

GB

Is he the One? Liverpool 'compile dossier' on possible Nunez replacement

2

IH

Roma vs. Lazio: Head-to-head record and past meetings

3

RV

Liverpool La Liga exit confirmed? Star given green light to leave in January

4

LL

Erling Haaland's record vs. West Ham

5

EH

"Really bad news" - Arsenal suffer crushing injury blow in Brighton draw

6

&B

Why Slot can step on the 'throat' of Amorim and rip apart rivals at Anfield

7

WS

January transfer window: Latest news and rumours including Reis to Brighton

8

JT

Saturday's Serie A predictions including Fiorentina vs. Napoli

9

SS

Saturday's Premier League predictions including Brighton vs. Arsenal

10

SP


. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .