Stoke City manager Mark Hughes has bemoaned his side's lack of concentration after they fell to a 2-1 defeat at Newcastle United this afternoon.
The Potters had made a decent start to the new season, claiming a victory over Arsenal and taking a point from their game with Manchester United last time out, but lost momentum in the North-East today as the Magpies notched up their third win on the bounce.
"We have played better than that in recent weeks and it's disappointing from our point of view. We were loose in our general play and the accuracy of our passing," Hughes told Match of the Day.
"We had to be vigilant, but towards the end of the game we made a mistake on the set play after working really hard to get back on level terms. We went for it at the end, but it wasn't to be.
"Second half we controlled the game for the vast majority, they were just looking to break on us. We didn't quite do our jobs at a corner and Jack [Butland] wasn't able to save it. We'll move on to the next one.
"We are a good side and we can knock it around, but at key moments we have to be clinical."
Next up for Stoke is a trip to Bristol City in the EFL Cup on Tuesday night, ahead of a tough home encounter with Chelsea next Saturday.
Neil Wilkes
