Stoke City survival target set amid Lewis Baker vs Josh Windass goal of the season debate
EFL pundits run the rule over a ‘seismic’ moment for Stoke City and Mark Robins, suggest how many points are needed for survival and back different horses in goal of the season argument
It was the way Stoke City secured a vital win as much as the win itself that could prove seismic for Mark Robins and the club, suggests EFL pundit George Elek.
Stoke were trailing 1-0 to Swansea after 61 minutes at the bet365 Stadium on Saturday, and the then table put the visitors on 40 points, eight ahead of their hosts and 11 clear of the bottom three.
But Wouter Burger headed in an equaliser, Bae Junho put the Potters ahead and then Lewis Baker sealed victory with a screamer from inside his own half that will be a contender for Championship goal of the season.
So full-time came with Swansea back on 37 points and Stoke moving up to 35 with a game in hand, six clear of the relegation places. Swansea boss Luke Williams – who had lost eight of his last 10 games – was then sacked on Monday evening.
On the Not The Top 20 podcast, host Ali Maxwell put himself in the Team Windass camp ahead of Baker in the goal of the season debate, backing Sheffield Wednesday’s Josh Windass’s strike from his own half against Derby last month.
But Elek threw his weight behind Baker, knowing the significance of the whole afternoon for both clubs. He said: “I just think the trajectory is very cool, the way he cuts across it and deliberately starts it wide of the left post and it comes back in. He’s a player that’s got that in him. We know his free-kick taking ability is very strong and very good. Maybe he doesn’t impact games positively quite as often as he should do.
“For Stoke to be staring down the barrel of defeat at home to Swansea with 15 minutes to go, this feels like a pivotal result for both of their seasons. It’s a huge three points for Stoke coming back from the brink and the nature of it. I think being 2-1 up and scoring another goal in the last minute is the best way to win a game because you felt every
single moment of jeopardy but then you have two final whistles, the final whistle when you score and then the real final whistle.
“I guess the buoyant nature of scoring in your own half, coming back to win a game 3-1 is going to be fairly seismic in terms of what the fanbase and players can take out of that game.
