'Great to see Stoke on the front foot'

LIKE the balance of Stoke City in the first couple of games. The additions of Sorba Thomas and Divin Mubama, who can play the target man, make a difference.

- By Mike Pejic

Hopefully they will have players who can come in and keep up that momentum if and when needed.

It'll be interesting to see what Lamine Cisse is like, for example, and if Robert Bozenik can find his stride.

We saw the contrast in squads when Mark Robins could look to his bench last weekend while Sheffield Wednesday were asking their starting players to find something extra.

A stronger, deeper squad is pleasing, and competition for places should drive standards.

It might be seen as a challenge to keep everyone happy when you've got depth, but don't overlook the idea that good players want competition too and it can drive spirit.

It will take the skill of a manager but you want to be able to make changes due to injury or form and to switch systems between or within matches if needed to find solutions.

I think you can already tell that the spirit in the squad is a lot, lot better and positivity can pull you through games. You don't want anything dragging you back.

People might call you lucky devils but, on the whole, things happen because you deserve it.

You get your breaks if you try to make things happen rather than wait for things to happen.

Football is a forward-thinking game and I've enjoyed seeing Stoke play on the front foot.