Mark Hughes: 'Stoke City board are fully behind me'

By Daniel Lewis, Senior Reporter | 20 October 2017

Stoke City manager Mark Hughes does not believe that his job is under any immediate threat, despite a second Premier League boss being axed earlier this week.

Mark Hughes has insisted that he retains the full confidence of Stoke City's board members despite last weekend's heavy defeat to Manchester City.

The Potters fell to a 7-2 loss at the Etihad Stadium to leave them 17th in the Premier League table, just two points above the dropzone after eight rounds of matches.

A second Premier League manager was sacked earlier this week as Leicester City, the side directly below Stoke, took the surprise decision to axe Craig Shakespeare.

Hughes does not believe that his job is under any immediate threat, however, telling reporters: "What we have here are owners who understand football and who understand there isn't a straight line between success and failure.

"We didn't perform anywhere near what we know we are capable of. However, we came up against a side at the very top of their game. We're not in denial. We didn't perform how we would have liked. We will learn from the match, but I'm sure we won't be the last going up against Man City at the moment to find it difficult.

"We've come through a very difficult period and now we face a better set of fixtures and have an opportunity to climb the table. We are only one win away from the top 10. It's very early days and we are positive going into the rest of the season. We should look forward to our next set of fixtures and aim to pick up maximum points from them."

Stoke play host to Bournemouth at the bet365 Stadium on Saturday afternoon, seeking a second win in eight attempts in all competitions.