Back in January when Kenwyne Jones was swapped for Peter Odemwingie every Stoke fan’s eye rested upon yesterday’s fixture. Much like when Tony Pulis left Stoke and all dreaded visiting Crystal Palace but all knew Kenwyne’s revenge ran much deeper.
Just last week Jones appealed to have the £75,000 fine he received after refusing to make himself available for the Liverpool game back in January overturned. His appeal failed and the former Stoke front man will now be forced to pay it. Stoke lost the game 5-3 before going on to lose to both Palace and Chelsea but since then Stoke have been formidable at The Britannia Stadium, beating the likes of Manchester United and Arsenal as well as having a fantastic game against Aston Villa on the road.
Yet Stoke fans thought the Cardiff fixture would be a chance for Odemwingie to prove a point against his former club but still felt Jones had more of a statement to make. Odemwingie went down in the area and won the penalty which allowed Stoke to go ahead before Cardiff leveled the game up with a penalty of their own. Kenwyne started the game on the bench but came on in the closing stages and had Stoke fans’ hearts in their mouths but never really threatened the defence, much like when he was playing for Stoke. Oussama Assaidi had the final say of the game with a thunderbolt strike but one of the best goalkeepers in the Premier League this season, David Marshall, did what he has done many times this season for Cardiff and kept the game at 1-1, the way it ended.
Many feel a point was a bad result but given that Stoke have won just two games on their travels this season a point feels almost like a win and puts them just one win away from equalling their highest ever points tally in the Premier League, with three games remaining against an improved Tottenham, relegation-threatened Fulham and West Brom.
Former manager Pulis seems to have achieved the unthinkable by keeping Crystal Palace in the Premier League but it seems he may not be travelling to the Potteries with The Eagles next season as this morning he became a contender to take over from under pressure manager Alan Pardew at Newcastle United.
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