Another key test

Stoke City once looked like the most solid of Premier League mid-table clubs as we did for a while.  The New Yotk Times has investigated why such clubs cannot sustain themselves in the Premier League: https://footballeconomyv2.blogspot.com/2026/02/why-do-solid-mid-table-clubs-eventually.html

I think the NYT has only got part of the story as they don't seem to be very familiar with intermediate level statistics and such phenomena as regression to the mean.

Nevertheless, Sroke have much better financial backing than we do, but after a bright start to the season, have seen something of a slump in form recently, having dropped from 2nd to 13th.  They are five places below Charlton in the form table. However, their away record is strong: won six and drawn four.

Results went our way last night and when you are in a relegation dogfight you have to pay attention to them.  Thanks to my son-in-law's club Southampton for fighting back from 3-0 down at the King Power to defeat Leicester 4-3.   Norwich disposed of Oxford.

Our form book against Stoke offers a little hope and I had this down as 2-0 win at the beginning of the season.   The Addicks have lost just one of their last eight home league meetings with Stoke City (W5 D2), winning their only two this century: 1-0 in January 2008 and 3-1 in August 2019.

Stoke City have won just one of their last eight away games against Charlton Athletic (D2 L5), a 2-1 victory in January 1997 under Lou Macari thanks to a Mike Sheron brace. Overall, they’ve won each of their last two league games against them, previously winning three in a row in January 1997.  

Stoke City have won just one of their last 41 league games in London (D14 L26) – a run that stretches back to December 2014 – beating Queens Park Rangers 2-0 in December 2021.

Stoke gaffer Mark Robins has got his excuses in early saying that The Valley is a tough place to go, not least because of the pitch.   [?]