3 things we clearly learnt about Stoke City after the 1-1 draw v Barnsley | OneFootball

It was a frustrating night for Stoke City on Wednesday, as they were forced to settle for a point in a 1-1 draw with Barnsley at the Bet365 Stadium.

Things started well for the Potters, with Sam Surridge firing them ahead inside the opening 20 minutes, only for Cauley Woodrow’s stunning free kick to pull Barnsley level with seven minutes of the first half remaining.

Stoke then missed a big chance to go in front when they were controversially awarded a penalty when Barnsley goalkeeper Brad Collins was adjudged to have brought down Surridge, only for the Tykes shot-stopper to tip Mario Vrancic’s resulting spot-kick onto the bar.

There would be no more goals in the second half, although Stoke defender Tommy Smith did, again controversially, see red for a challenge on Claudio Gomes, before a mass brawl on the touchline between both players and staff brought a rather unsavoury end to the game.

With all that going on, we’ve taken a look at three things we learnt about Stoke from that draw with Barnsley on Wednesday evening.

An opportunity missed

Considering the situation going into the game, it is hard not to feel like this was something of an opportunity missed.

Ahead of the match, Stoke had taken 13 points from six league games, and were third in the table, while from the same number of games, Barnsley had taken just six points, and one win, meaning the Potters ought to have been clear favourites going into this one.

Indeed, West Brom’s draw with Derby on Tuesday means that victory over the Tykes would have lifted Stoke into the automatic promotion places, which would have been yet another strong indicator of the Potters’ potential in the battle for a place in the Premier League next season.

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Sam Surridge gamble paying off

When Stoke signed Sam Surridge from Bournemouth for a reported £5.5million, it could certainly have been argued that the Potters were taking something of a risk on the attacker.

Surridge had scored just five goals in 31 appearances in league and cup for the Cherries last season, a record that suggests there was no guarantee of him being able to get the regular goals needed to lead the line for the Potters during the current campaign.

However, the 23-year-old’s strike against Barnsley was his fourth goal in just nine appearances in all competitions this season, a vast improvement in terms of his goal-per-game ratio. Add to that the fact that he could have had a hat-trick were it not for some excellent saves by Collins, and it seems as though Surridge has now found a place where he can flourish, to the benefit of both him and the club.

A clear desire to win

One thing that cannot be levelled at Stoke after Wednesday night, is that they were not keen to win the game.

Even after Smith’s sending off, the Potters continued to look for a winner, and it was Stoke assistant Dean Holden’s desire to get the ball off Barnsley boss Markus Schopp to one of his players so he could take a throw-in and continue the game, that sparked that stoppage time brawl.

If Stoke maintain that intent to win – on the pitch of course – then they are likely to put pressure on plenty of other teams this season, and that could stand them in good stead in the battle for promotion.