Stoke City were held to a point by Queens Park Rangers but the game was overshadowed by a major injury
07:00, 18 Jan 2026
QPR manager Julien Stephan on the sidelines at Stoke.
View 2 Images
QPR manager Julien Stephan on the sidelines at Stoke.(Image: Getty Images)
Stoke City move up to seventh in the Championship despite an often painful home goalless draw with Queens Park Rangers. Here are the talking points from the bet365 Stadium.
Mark Robins: we are not cursed
If it’s not left-back, it’s centre-forward. One blow is bad enough but these are repeated blows in a short space of time.
Robert Bozenik was out with a painful shoulder injury, Nathan Lowe out with a bad leg injury, Emre Tezgel out with a nasty ankle injury, then Sam Gallagher was injured in training and Divin Mubama was stretchered off here.
Gallagher has barely been able to get going since joining Stoke but to have four others with no real injury records all out at the same time takes some doing.
One way or the other it is forcing Stoke into the market in this position and how they will be able to do it within budget restrictions will be interesting.
Mark Robins said: "I don't think Stoke are cursed. We're just going through a moment. We carry a small squad. Jamie Donley went back early in the window and when you lose players it has an impact. Then we have lost players in the manner we have, because they're not all soft tissue injuries, you're looking at impacts mostly. You can't keep sustaining that. We've got a lot of games and a three-game week is a moving week. We've got to get the players ready. There won't be a lot of training, it'll just be recovery."
An apology from QPR
QPR boss Julien Stephan sent apologies and best wishes to Mubama, insisting that Jimmy Dunne had not intended to hurt him.
Stephan said: “I want to have a word for the striker. I hope he will come back very quickly on the pitch. I hope it’s not a bad injury.
“I know Jimmy very well and I know he did not want to do something wrong. When you stop like that for 10 minutes and you see the player leave on the stretcher it is not easy for anybody (to focus back on the football match).
“I need to have a word for the striker, to apologise of course, and hope he comes back quickly.
“Jimmy did a long run to go and see the striker and to apologise in the situation. Of course it was not an intention. It was a duel, not a bad intention. We have to think about him and wish him the best for the future.”
Making the most of possession
Not for the first time, Stoke are looking more likely to win matches when they have less of the ball this winter – although there were still enough moments to win this one.
Generally, Stoke have been at their best when they can hit teams on the transition and having 73 per cent of possession against QPR only led to conjuring three shots on target. It was a frustrating afternoon, not helped by the visiting team being keen to kill time and a poor referee who was unable to hurry them up.
Stoke were at their best in the opening stages but a tactical time out by keeper Joe Walsh allowed his side to have an impromptu team talk and take away their momentum.
A big penalty call
There won’t have been many easier decisions for a referee in the EFL this weekend than when Amadou Mbengue had his hands waving above his head and stopped a Sorba Thomas header in the six-yard box.
Goodness knows what referee Matthew Donohue was thinking as he decided it wasn’t a penalty. He has been on Sky Sports earlier this season to run through the audio recording between himself and his assistants that explained how they came to their calls through a game but it will take some doing to talk their way into this one make sense.
A fourth clean sheet in a row
Well done Stoke for keeping four clean sheets in a row for the first time since November 2006.
Mark Robins applauds during Stoke's tribute to fans, players and staff who died in 2025.
View 2 Images
Mark Robins applauds during Stoke's tribute to fans, players and staff who died in 2025.(Image: Zac Locke)
A poignant moment
Stoke’s annual tributes on the big screen to fans, players and staff who have died in the previous 12 months is always done very well.
Mark Robins, who would have been busy preparing for the game, stopped and joined the applause on the touchline after he had come down the tunnel.
He said before the game: "I recall a year ago, in my first match as manager, what a poignant and humbling experience this day is. We are reminded that this club means so much to so many as we pay our respects and gratitude to those who have given a part of their lives to Stoke City.
"On behalf of the players and staff, our love and thoughts are with each and every supporter here remembering their loved ones."
Your verdict? Click HERE to join the debate
Sky Sports discounted Premier League and EFL package
This article contains affiliate links, we will receive a commission on any sales we generate from it. Learn more
Content Image
£49
£35
Sky
Get Sky Sports here
Sky has slashed the price of its Essential TV and Sky Sports bundle for the 2025/26 season, saving members £336 and offering more than 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more.
Sky will show at least 215 live Premier League games this season, an increase of up to 100 more.
We have launched a new WhatsApp group to deliver the latest Stoke news directly to your phone. Click the link select 'Join Chat' and you're in. If for some reason you decide you no longer want to be in our community, you can leave at any time by clicking on the name at the top of your screen and clicking 'Exit Group', simple as that.
Every day, the StokeonTrentLive football desk strive to deliver news, features and transfer-related stories as a part of our overall package of Stoke City content.
Our dedicated reporter Pete Smith - who you can follow on X - follows Stoke home and away and offers you comprehensive coverage from matchdays, press conferences and everything that happens in between.
Article continues below
With so much going on, we send out a daily free Stoke City newsletter which you can sign up for - and means you'll have a round-up of the key stories land in your email inbox.
If you prefer reading our Stoke stories on your phone, consider downloading the Stoke-on-TrentLive app, in which you can personalise the content you see by selecting Stoke City as one of your designated topics. You can get it from Apple