Reaction at the Bet365 Stadium following Stoke City’s 2-0 victory against Middlesbrough
In an important home victory over Middlesbrough, Steven Schumacher has expressed gratitude to the Stoke City supporters for their support and to his players for a show that the fans could not have been happier with.
After a 2-0 victory at the bet365 Stadium, Stoke remains in the Championship relegation zone; however, there are now just six points separating the bottom three from 12th in an extremely tight bottom half. Eleven games remain, and the first one is a trip to promotion-chasing Leeds on Tuesday.
The victory over Middlesbrough was crucial for both confidence and the standings in such a close contest, and there was an especially upbeat and boisterous mood after Jon Walters’ rallying cries.
“We need the fans today and we’re going to need the fans again because we’re in a real battle,” stated Schumacher. We need to make it tough to get here since the bottom part of the division is crowded with so many teams. From the very first whistle, our fans were magnificent. They were able to stay with us for a lot longer after Daniel (Iversen) made that save, which helped us cross the finish line. I am truly grateful for the players’ support and the work and dedication they were able to muster.
“It was a massive win,” he continued. That’s how every game is going to be from now on; every point you score will matter greatly because everyone can see how close it is. Between us and the 12th position, there are six points. There will be fierce competition for each point, but we performed well enough today to win all three. I’m so happy for everyone.
Stoke’s upcoming away games against Preston North End and Leeds are intimidating, but as long as they can take care of their own business, they don’t want to be seen worrying too much about the league position.
That concludes it, Schumacher said. “You can’t concentrate on it because it will alter a lot between now and the end of the season. You just need to try to get as many as you can in your next game out of the 11 games left. There are a lot of points up for grabs. In this league, we’re heading to one of the hardest venues, so we better make sure we’re there.
