Stoke City: Alex Neil starts with a 1-1 with Swansea

A late equaliser for Stoke means a neutral start for new boss Alex Neil. An early goal for Swansea defined this match, and despite it being an open game, Stoke felt shut out. Sub Tyrese Campbell got the all important goal just as the 90 minutes were up, and Neil will feel that’s a decent enough start. But he has a mountain to climb. Here’s how the game unfolded in real time:

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This game is HUGE. Don’t tell me it isn’t. Michael O’Neill has been gone just over a week, Stoke have staggeringly won 1-0 at Blackburn (under now released Dean Holden), and Alex Neil has joined from Sunderland with very little explanation as to why (they practically begged him to stay, and they have crowds of 35,000 not 20,000). Holden went to a back-4 at the weekend, and now Neil fields an unchanged side. Yet another new era begins! (Oh, and Joe Allen returns to the bet365. Juicy!)

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3.15 Keeper Andy Fisher caught napping, so Baker hits the bar from distance, Gayle’s rebound header is cleared off the line, and Clucas’ shot is deflected away! Stoke fans not used to this much excitement.

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5.17 0-1 !! Easy goal for Swansea City as Wood floats the ball in for Joel Piroe to slot home. Laughable.

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14.25 Liam Delap playing the Tyrese style of shoving the player to high-heaven, but the ref doesn’t approve of this game.

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21.10 The keeper picks up a ball that many felt was a back pass. Still looking for replay footage of that!

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21.53 Swansea miss a sitter as Flint caught napping this time. Alex Neil must be wondering…

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23.30 Delap tries lobbing the keeper from the halfway line, but harmlessly wide.

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28.12 Swansea taking potshots at the Stoke goal, with a decent save by Bonham, but it’s end to end stuff.

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42.20 Great save by Bonham who saw it late. Gives Joe Allen a chance to take a corner, and gets a round of applause from the crowd. Nice.

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45+1 SCFC 0 SCFC 1 – Same old, same old. Can’t wait to see some more!!

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50.20 Flint has a clean header from a Baker free kick…so little chance of it not going over the bar…

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Attendance 18,697. Not so good. Reminds me of when Mark Hughes joined Stoke after Pulis. Attendances fell away drastically instead of (as the board thought it would) increasing. Are Stoke fans suffering from New Manager Fatigue? Sunderland meanwhile are playing in front of 36,500 & winning 3-0 going 8th.

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58.10 Connor Taylor trips Cooper gaining an unnecessary yellow card, but no one goes over to put their arm round his shoulder to calm him down.

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65.30 As Tyrese, Fosu and Smallbone prepare on the sidelines, chances fall to both sides, but Bonham is the busier. They finally come on for Gayle, Taylor and Thompson. Wilmot will switch from right back to right-centre-back as Fosu takes his place.

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71.40 Great move as Delap wins the ball brilliantly to set up Tyrese who crosses for Delap but his shot is deflected for a corner.

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77.10 FINALLY, Matthew Sorinola gets a yellow for manhandling Brown. Jacob sadly can’t get on the end of Baker’s cheeky free-kick. Swansea immediately sub Sorinola just in case.

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87.40 Smallbone’s cross is headed wide by Tyrese. It’s just not happening. Swansea’s tactics? Same as Sunderland’s last week. Ask Alex Neil.

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89.01 Delap brought down on edge of area. Penalty? Just outside, says ref! Replay inconclusive. Very close.

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90.00 1-1 !!! Tyrese converts after Flint heads back Smallbone’s cross from the right! Surprise!! 4 minutes added.

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90+4 Somehow this ends 1-1. Not sure what that means, but a point is a point.