http://www.thisisstaffordshire.co.uk/story-13411891-detail/story.html MAYBE, just maybe, Stoke will at long last get some credit for the way they play the game. For the first time, I'm hearing just about everyone in the wider footballing world agreeing that they played some good football during that memorable 1-1 draw with Manchester United on Saturday evening. Stoke certainly couldn't have chosen a better stage on which to show they can actually play a bit. It sounds like fans were also mightily impressed with how they tried to take the game to United. Well, they got their reward with that first-ever Premier League point against Sir Alex Ferguson's men. People are surely starting to recognise that it isn't all crash, bang, wallop football where Stoke are concerned. I'm not saying they don't play high balls into the opposition penalty area. Why wouldn't they against a United side with a re-jigged back four and a keeper perceived to be weak in the air? But to brand them as one-dimensional is clearly an insult they do not deserve. And I won't listen to anyone still trying to tell me they are a bunch of nasty brutes who go around kicking opponents off the park. So there were one or two challenges at the start of Saturday's game. Blimey, when I was on the end of those kind of challenges I'd just get up and get on with the game. You didn't bat an eyelid once-upon-a-time, but now we live in a footballing culture where you can't touch a player without his fans and team-mates screaming about mass murder. The absence of Wayne Rooney helped Stoke's cause, but I wouldn't want anyone using that to take any credit away from them. Stoke played to Peter Crouch's strengths in the air and were rewarded with that equaliser after half-time. I was also impressed by how Stoke pressed United to prevent them getting into their stride. The narrowing of the pitch undoubtedly helps, and I don't need a tape measure to tell me the Britannia Stadium playing surface is a hell of a lot smaller than it is at Old Trafford. But if it suits your own players to play on that size of surface, then why not? The pitch will be a bit wider at the Britannia on Thursday, however, to comply with UEFA rules for Stoke's Europa League clash with Besiktas. I'll be at the ground commentating for ITV4 on what should be a fair test of Stoke's capabilities. The fact Colin Kazim-Richards has been such a star in Turkish football, after getting no further than Brighton and Sheffield United in this country, shows the gap that still exists between the top divisions in England and Turkey. But Stoke have no excuse for taking them lightly, particularly after Besiktas beat Maccabi Tel-Aviv 5-1 in their first group game. No wonder Tony Pulis went to Turkey on Sunday to see their 1-0 win over Antalyaspor. Going in person is always better than watching tapes when it comes to assessing the shape and approach their new coach, the Portuguese Carlos Carvalhal, goes for. I'm still confident Stoke are good enough to finish in the top two of their four-team group and progress to the next round. And that great draw in Kiev the other week means they can afford at least one bad result elsewhere and still go through.
