Stoke City prepared for their Championship opener against Derby County with a 1-0 pre-season victory over Premier League Burnley
09:55, 03 Aug 2025
Referee Steve Martin sends off Burnley's Josh Laurent during the pre-season friendly match at Stoke City.
Referee Steve Martin sends off Burnley's Josh Laurent during the pre-season friendly match at Stoke City.
Stoke City old boy Josh Laurent was sent off as Burnley were beaten 1-0 in the Potteries - and his new boss was not impressed.
Laurent, who played more than 70 games for Stoke before joining the Clarets almost a year ago, was on the wrong end of two yellow cards at the bet365 Stadium on Saturday.
And that left Burnley boss Scott Parker lamenting: “Just a little bit of common sense, maybe, would have been wise.”
Stoke impressed in their final pre-season game before the real action starts next Saturday, Ben Wilmot prodding home the only goal of the game in the first half.
But as Parker’s Premier League new boys toiled against their Championship hosts, the big flashpoint of the game came when referee Steve Martin dismissed Laurent just after the hour mark.
The midfielder, a former Stoke captain, was already on a booking when he lunged in on Bae Junho in front of the Stoke technical area, prompting Martin to issue a second caution and consequently a red card.
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Parker later complained: “I get the referee's position. He had to referee it, he said, like a proper game. But then that didn't really add up with what was going on with their side as well, which was a bit inconsistent.
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“But it is what it is. I'm disappointed because that's just a little bit of a bitter taste. I mean, I get a reckless tackle, of course, and you need to punish that. But just [show] a bit of initiative really and tell me to bring him off.
“Even Stoke were saying, ‘Look, can we let him bring another player on?’ But I get it, I understand it. I understand if that's what the referee's been told by his superiors, then I get he's petrified of not doing that.
“But just a little bit of common sense, maybe, would have been wise because both managers really were a little bit disappointed.”
Martin also dished out another five bookings during the game, Stoke’s last before they take on Derby County at the bet365 Stadium next Saturday (3pm) in their 2025/26 Championship opener.
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Parker added: “The whole reason we're here, Stoke as well, is for both teams to get fit, work on tactical elements and keep improving, but towards the back end of the last 30 minutes it was a bit non-existent in terms of a football sense.
“To be quite honest, I just thought [the dismissal] set a tone - I think that was the first thing I said to the fourth official - that you're going down the road here of red cards.”
Did Laurent deserve to walk? Click HERE to have your say on the game
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