TREBLE CHANCE
Schumacher eyes three victories in a row to end the season on a high note
STEVEN Schumacher is calling on his Stoke City side to make it three wins in a row for his first time as boss – to end a tough season on a high note and give supporters a reason to look forward to the next one.
Wins over Plymouth and Southampton, and with them two of the best performances of the campaign, have secured Stoke’s Championship status and now they will draw the curtains on 2023/24 with a home match against Bristol City today (12.30pm).
It is set to be a busy and important summer behind the scenes to try to make sure that Stoke are in nothing like the same position next term – and that includes much improved results over the long-term at the bet365 Stadium.
Schumacher said: “We want to try to finish on a high if we can. It’s not been easy, especially at the bet365.
“At the start it was hard to try to get wins there. Once we got those first ones against QPR and Middlesbrough, more have come and we’ve played well in the last few games at home.
“There was only one, against Norwich, when we weren’t at it and got the result we deserved.
“Since then performances have been good at home so it’s what we’ve been saying to the players, ‘Come on, let’s give everyone something to smile about going into the summer and want to come back and watch us.’”
Relegation issues are still to be finalised although Rotherham are down and Huddersfield Town are as good as with them barring an unprecedented turnaround in goal difference.
A team could go down with 50 points so Schumacher is pleased to have reached 53 with that win on the south coast.
“I used the word relief last Saturday after the win at Southampton, that we’d got the three points that we needed,” he said.
“I felt we did need another win and to go there and get it, which not many teams have done this season at St Mary’s, and put on a performance that we did I was proud.
“But when I got into the changing room and looked at the other results, relief was still the overriding emotion. I didn’t want to go into the last game of the season needing a result against a really good team in Bristol
City. “This build-up has been a lot more relaxed inside, a lot more calm about the situation but still no less focused.
I want to win this game at the weekend. I’d never won back to back league games in the Championship in my first year (at this level) as a manager and to win three on the spin is something not done too often in this league.
“If we can do that it will give everyone a lift going into the summer.”
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