Shawcross: Stoke Players Must Accept Responsibility Of Poor Run

Stoke City dropped into the relegation zone after losing five of their last seven games and were knocked out of the FA Cup on Saturday by League Two outfit Coventry City, leading to Hughes' sacking.

Shawcross admits the Stoke players need to take some responsibility for the team's shortcomings and has urged his teammates to pull together and fight against the threat of relegation.

“I think we all have to look at ourselves in the mirror,” he told Stoke City .

“As players we haven’t performed well enough, maybe the manager will look back at things and be disappointed too.

“Thankfully we are far from adrift - we are five points from tenth place so there are positives there for us to take.”

“The next week or so, leading in to the Manchester United game, is huge for us and we really need to have a look at ourselves.

“Have we been doing enough as a group? Probably not, so we have to rally around each other now, get together, stand up and produce the performances that are going to keep us in the Premier League.”

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Sobhi Denies Terriers Full Points To Share The Spoils

Huddersfield were unable to hold onto their early lead at the John Smith's Stadium as Stoke battled back for a 1-1 draw on Boxing day. 

Ince nets his first goal of season and Sobhi equalises on the hour mark, Potters concede 40th goal in 2017/18

Match Summary

The Terriers failed to capitalise on their early advantage from Tom Ince's 10th-minute goal as Ramadan Sobhi found an equaliser in the second half.

The Egyptian winger's second goal in as many games arrived in the 60th minute as the two teams shared the spoils.

Full Report

The Potters got off the worst possible start as the hosts took an early lead through mercurial winger Ince, who finally broke his duck for the campaign.

Fellow forward Collin Quaner did well to cut the ball back into the area after a surging run and Ince met the ball with a neat side-footed finish beyond Jack Butland. It was the 40th goal conceded by the leaky Stoke defence.

Just before the half-hour mark, the Terriers somehow managed to keep the score at 1-0, with Ryan Shawcross and Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting seeing their efforts cleared off the line by goalkeeper Jonas Lossl.

David Wagner's side managed to stay ahead at the the half-time whistle and enjoyed a lively start to the second half.

But their resilience was soon ended when Sobhi levelled matters. Joe Allen played a one-two with Choupo-Moting from a quickly taken set-piece and found himself wide of the area before finding Sobhi at the back post for a simple tap-in.

Neither club was able to find the winner but on the basis of the form guide, the Potters went home the happier with a crucial point to move away from the drop zone.

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