1 week Ago By [email protected] (Peter Smith)
There was possibly a telling moment in Mark Robins' pre-match press conference on Friday when he was asked for a fitness update on Sol Sidibe. There is no doubt about Sidibe's potential. He has been courted by some of the biggest clubs in Europe over the last decade, coaches love him and he has captained England at youth level, having been chased by France, Mali and Senegal.
The 19-year-old had been hoping to step up his first team involvement this season but Narcis Pelach was reluctant to throw him in too much because of Stoke's predicament at the wrong end of the Championship and then he was laid low with a pars back fracture when Robins took over in the New Year. He had actually unwittingly gritted his teeth and played through it for a while but scans left him sidelined and ordered to rest for a couple of months. He's back training now, ahead of schedule, but this has been one area where Robins - understandably focusing on the here and now in almost every other way - has been able to think long-term.
“Sol is just trying to build up his fitness base and the good thing about that is that his fracture has healed and he’s on his way back," said the manager. “I want to try to build him up in a way and see him come back with a physical impact on his body so he’s stronger. I want to see that.
His body shape hasn’t changed much yet in terms of that but I want to see it in all the players and make sure we are physically bigger and more robust and make sure we can cope with the demands that this league throws at you.” Sidibe, like his dad Mama, is a big lad and he's an athlete. So this wasn't a barb but recognition that Stoke need to raise their bar when it comes to physicality.
If Sidibe can come back in for pre-season and throw a new weight around, he has the technical ability to force his way quickly up the pecking order. He can take inspiration from Bojan and Marc Muniesa, who hit the gym hard to make it at Stoke - and they had been big things coming through the ranks at Barcelona. "The change was tough for me, the different styles of football between Barcelona and Stoke," said Muniesa.
"It took me the first three or four months to get in shape. I gained something like six or seven kilograms in muscle. You need that in this league, you need to be physically stronger than in other leagues.
" Physicality on the whole is high on the agenda for Stoke in this summer's transfer window but there are four rather important games to play before then. While you're here, we have launched a new WhatsApp group to deliver the latest Stoke news directly to your phone. Click on this link, select 'Join Chat' and you're in.
If for some reason you decide you no longer want to be in our community, you can leave at any time by clicking on the name at the top of your screen and clicking 'Exit Group', simple as that..
