1 week Ago By [email protected] (Peter Smith)
Mark Robins explained that he switched Ali Al-Hamadi for Sam Gallagher at half-time against Cardiff to make sure Stoke City kept 11 players on the pitch. Al-Hamadi was recalled to the starting XI in South Wales, having initially dropping out a fortnight previously while he nursed a hip injury. The 23-year-old striker was involved in setting up a big early chance for Lewis Baker but he was booked for a foul during first-half added time, having already been warned about a previous challenge.
Gallagher took his place and helped Stoke ultimately seal a vital 1-0 victory over their Championship rivals and see a two-point gap between the teams stretch to five with just four games left to play. Robins told Radio Stoke: “Ali had picked up a booking and I just felt he was a little bit hot-headed. It was nothing other than that really and I couldn’t risk them throwing themselves to the ground and the referee.
.. You saw what everyone was like in the stadium.
It was all on edge and you’ve got to understand that. “Gally came on and did really well. Ali had run about, there’s no two ways about it, he’s not done anything particularly wrong.
“That was the reason behind it. It was about making sure we came through and put them under some pressure in the second half that we needed.” Ben Gibson had missed the game due to illness.
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