Stoke City

2011–12 season
Chairman	Peter Coates
Manager	Tony Pulis
Stadium	Britannia Stadium
Premier League	14th (45 points)
FA Cup	Quarter-finals
League Cup	Fourth round
UEFA Europa League	Round of 32
Top goalscorer	League:Peter Crouch (10) All: Peter Crouch (14)
Highest home attendance	27,789 vBolton Wanderers (13 May 2012)
Lowest home attendance	26,500 vEverton (1 May 2012)
Average home league attendance	27,216
Home colours Away colours
← 2010–11 2012–13 →

The2011–12 season wasStoke City's fourth season in thePremier League and the 56th in thetop tier of English football. BecauseFA Cup winnersManchester City qualified for theUEFA Champions League via their third-place finish in the Premier League, as FA Cup runners-up, Stoke qualified for theUEFA Europa League.

Stoke's first excursion into European football for the first time since 1975 was a main talking point leading up to the 2011–12 season. Stoke were drawn againstCroatian sideHajduk Split and after two legs ran out 2–0 winners. After beatingFC Thun, Stoke were handed a tough group containingBeşiktaş,Dynamo Kyiv andMaccabi Tel Aviv which Stoke managed to progress through finishing in second position. City's reward was a tie against Spanish giantsValencia and despite putting up a spirited second leg performance Stoke went out 2–0 on aggregate.

With 12 fixtures in Europe, Stoke's Premier League form took a hit with some indifferent performances. The season started well with Stoke going four matches unbeaten and breaking the club's transfer record with the £10 million signing ofPeter Crouch fromTottenham Hotspur. European football soon began to take its toll and with some poor defeats against the likes ofBolton Wanderers,Sunderland,Queens Park Rangers, Stoke failed to really cement their position in the top half of the table, and after picking up just four wins in the final half of the season, Stoke finished in 14th position with 45 points.

The Stoke City squad returned to the club on 7 July before flying out toAustria for their annual training camp. Upon their return they played two ofTony Pulis's old clubsNewport County andNewport YMCA. Games against Football League sidesBrentford,Aldershot Town andSheffield Wednesday had also been arranged as well as the traditional match againstNewcastle Town.^[1]

Whilst in Austria Stoke played a match against local part-time side SV Thal. Stoke won with three goals in the second half throughMichael Tonge,Jonathan Walters and a very rare goal fromAndy Wilkinson; Thal scored a consolation via Erik Bischtand. Upon their return to England, Stoke travelled to Tony Pulis's home town ofNewport for two matches against his former clubs. The first match saw City draw 1–1 withNewport County, County scored through their captain Gary Warren beforeKenwyne Jones equalised after 75 minutes, he had the ball in the back of the net later on but it was ruled out for offside. The following day Stoke fielded a different team for the match againstNewport YMCA. Goals fromBen Marshall,Diego Arismendi,Matthew Lund andRory Delap gave Stoke an easy 6–1 victory. After the trip toSouth Wales Pulis said he 'enjoyed his return home'.^[2]

Stoke then scored another six againstNewcastle Town in what was the 30th meeting between the two clubs. Stoke's goals came from Australian trialistRobert Stambolziev,Jermaine Pennant,Glenn Whelan Jonathan Walters, and a brace fromKenwyne Jones. City then suffered two poor results losing 1–0 to both Brentford and Aldershot. City ended their pre-season schedule with a 0–0 draw against Sheffield Wednesday.

For the season opener againstChelsea managerTony Pulis gave a league debut toJonathan Woodgate withRobert Huth moving to right-back. For Chelsea they had new managerAndré Villas-Boas in charge for his firstPremier League match. After an even first half, Chelsea were the better side after the break withAsmir Begović making a number of important saves. After injuries toMatthew Etherington andRory Delap, City went defensive and were able to claim a goalless draw.^[3]

After the Europa League match against Thun in Switzerland, Stoke travelled toNorfolk to take on newly promotedNorwich City. Stoke started the match the better side but suffered a huge blow whenJermaine Pennant was forced off due to injury after half an hour. Norwich took the lead through former Stoke reserve team playerRitchie De Laet as "The Canaries" went into the break in the lead. After half-time, Stoke were awarded a penalty whenLeon Barnett fouledJonathan Walters, however Norwich goalkeeperJohn Ruddy saved Walters' effort. Stoke were able to get a result though asKenwyne Jones headed in Whelan's cross in the 94th minute to deny Norwich the win.^[4]

Stoke's final match of August was against Midlands rivalsWest Bromwich Albion atThe Hawthorns. It turned to be a poor match with both teams struggleling to create clear goal scoring chances. With the match seemingly destined for a goalless draw, "Baggies" keeperBen Foster hesitated when under pressure fromRyan Shotton, who was able to claim the ball and roll it into an empty net.^[5]

Stoke's new record signingPeter Crouch made his debut against his old clubLiverpool following the international break. City scored the only goal of the match after 20 minutes whenJamie Carragher brought down Walters in the penalty area, who fired the ball pastPepe Reina. Liverpool produced a dominant second half performance withLuis Suárez being a large threat to the Stoke defence. Stoke had to defend well to keep their 1–0 lead intact and due to some last ditch defending were able to come away with the three points.^[6]

After a 1–1 inKyiv, "The Potters"' nine-match unbeaten run was then ended in emphatic style bySunderland onWearside asSteve Bruce's side scored four goals without reply. Sunderland scored throughTitus Bramble following a mistake from Begović, an own goal from Woodgate, a deflected shot fromCraig Gardner and a free-kick fromSebastian Larsson.^[7]

Manchester United arrived at the Britannia with a 100% winning start but hadWayne Rooney missing out due to injury. They suffered another injury early into the match whenJavier Hernández was substituted after colliding with Begovic and Woodgate. They went into the lead through a low shot fromNani after 26 minutes. Stoke almost equalised soon after through Wilkinson, butDavid de Gea palmed his shot on to the post. Stoke's equaliser came after just half time with Peter Crouch scoring his first goal for "The Potters" since his move from Tottenham. Stoke had chances to win the match but De Gea made a number of fine saves. The final chance of the game fell toRyan Giggs, but he could only volley wide of the goal. It was the first time Stoke had gained a result against Manchester United in the Premier League.^[8]

Stoke made their first journey toSwansea City'sLiberty Stadium following the Europa League win over Beşiktaş. It proved to be a very poor afternoon for "The Potters", however, as two defensive errors allowed "The Jacks" score to twice throughScott Sinclair andDanny Graham.^[9]

Following the international break Stoke returned to Premier League football with the visit ofMartin Jol'sFulham side. In what was a quite first half, Stoke had two good chances to take the lead with Crouch and Pennant both guilty of poor finishing. In the second half, Stoke were the dominant side but were finding it difficult to break down a stubborn "Cottagers" defence. The breakthrough came after 80 minutes when Jon Walters tapped in Matthew Etherington's wayward shot, moments earlierJohn Arne Riise's hit a powerful free-kick that hit the Stoke crossbar. Three minutes from full-timeRory Delap scored a rare goal to seal a 2–0 win.^[10]

City's next game came atArsenal on 23 October at theEmirates Stadium. After a quite opening half hourGervinho broke the offside trap and put the ball past Begović. Stoke, however, were not behind for long as a well worked free kick was finished off by Crouch from all of two yards. Any hopes Stoke had of claiming their first points at the Emirates were ended in the second half by substituteRobin van Persie, who scored twice.^[11]

OnHalloween, Stoke faced informNewcastle United at the Britannia. It turned out to be a defensive "horror show" for City as former transfer targetDemba Ba scored a hat-trick as both Shawcross and Wilson departed due to injury.^[12] Manager Pulis blamed his defence for conceding 'sloppy goals'.^[13]

Stoke ended a busy period with a woeful defeat againstBolton Wanderers who reversed the scoreline from last season's FA Cup semi-final.^[14] Pulis branded his players performance as the worst since he returned to the club in 2006.^[15]

Following the two-week international break, Stoke had the opportunity to make amends for the Bolton defeat against newly promotedQueens Park Rangers. More poor defending, however, cost Stoke as goals fromLuke Young and a brace fromHeiðar Helguson earnedNeil Warnock's team the points. Goals from Walters and Shawcross proved to be in vain for City as they fell to a fourth-straight league defeat.^[16]

Stoke ended their losing run with victory over strugglingBlackburn Rovers at the Britannia. After a cagey opening to the match, Delap headed in a Pennant free-kick to put City in front. Rovers almost levelled soon after the break whenRubén Rochina weaved his way through the penalty area, though only to see his cross totally missed byMauro Formica. Two goals from Whelan and Crouch put Stoke in a comfortable position with Rochina replying for Rovers.^[17]

After securing European qualification against Dynamo Kyiv, Stoke travelled to an emotionalGoodison Park where theEverton fans were mourning the recent death ofGary Speed. Stoke produced a more familiar defensive performance than what was on show in November and came away with a rare away win thanks toRobert Huth's first goal of the season. There was one concern for Stoke, however, as goalkeeperThomas Sørensen had to be stretchered off with concussion.^[18]

In-form Tottenham travelled to the Britannia having gone 11 matches unbeaten. Stoke started with great pressure on the Spurs defence with Ryan Shotton's long throw-ins causing problems, and they led to both Stoke goals scored by Matthew Etherington to put City 2–0 in front at half time. Tottenham improved in the second half and pulled a goal back from the penalty spot, butYounès Kaboul was sent off and Stoke were able to claim the three points.^[19]

Stoke began the festive period with a short trip toWolverhampton and received some early good fortune from refereeAnthony Taylor. With Woodgate playing at right back, he came up againstMatt Jarvis and was booked for a late challenge early into the match. Woodgate continued to have problems with Jarvis and he gave away a penalty after 17 minutes, however Taylor decided not to send him off, much to the fury ofMick McCarthy.^[20] Hunt scored from the spot and Pulis substituted Woodgate and brought on Pennant and Stoke began to take control of the play. In the second half, a Huth free-kick was deflected into the goal byKevin Doyle, while Peter Crouch scored the winning goal for Stoke in a 2–1 win, marking the first time that Stoke had won four Premier League matches in a row.^[21]

Stoke's winning run came to an end in their next match away at league leadersManchester City in what was difficult evening for the "Potters". Under constant pressure from the start of the match, Man City controlled the match and easily won 3–0 with a brace fromSergio Agüero and a trademark long-range effort fromAdam Johnson. Stoke had a tough time and failed to trouble an underworkedJoe Hart.^[22]

The Boxing Day match againstAston Villa was played at an untraditional time of 7:45pm to accommodate live TV coverage. The match though was a bland and uneventful affair and finished unsurprisingly in a goalless draw. Marc Wilson had the best chance of the match as his header struck the crossbar late in the second half.^[23]

Stoke finished a successful 2011 with a 2–2 againstWigan Athletic. The "Latics" took the lead throughVictor Moses just before half time following a well worked move. Stoke tried in vain to pull level until the 77th minute whenGary Caldwell handled on the line and was sent off. Walters calmly beatAli Al-Habsi from the spot and soon after Cameron Jerome scored his first league goal for Stoke. Stoke, however, were denied a comeback with just moments after the Wigan restart they were awarded a penalty after Shotton had pulledHugo Rodallega's shirt.Ben Watson came off the bench to take the penalty and sent Sørensen the wrong way.^[24]

The first match of 2012 saw Stoke travel to struggling Blackburn, who surprisingly beat Manchester United in their previous match and Rovers started the match well withChristopher Samba hitting the crossbar and having a goal ruled out for a foul on Sørensen. Stoke then began to take control of the contest and took the lead through Peter Crouch after 17 minutes, Crouch's 100th league goal. He scored again just before half-time after good wing play by Matthew Etherington. Rovers pulled a goal back throughDavid Goodwillie with 20 minutes left, but Stoke were able to see out the rest of the match with relative ease to claim a 2–1 victory.^[25]

Stoke continued their improved away form by drawing 0–0 at Liverpool. Stoke put in a fine defensive performance and whilst they never threatened to win the match they were equally looked unlikely to lose as Liverpool struggled to break down a hard working Stoke defence.^[26]

Stoke's first home match of 2012 was against West Brom at a windy Britannia Stadium, and theBaggies took full advantage of the conditions withJames Morrison taking long-range shots. He hit the crossbar with one before scoring after a huge swerve deceived Sørensen, where the ball bounced under his body to give West Brom the lead. Stoke struggled to get back into the match but were given a penalty whenGabriel Tamaș fouled Walters; his penalty, however, was easily saved by Ben Foster. Cameron Jerome came off the bench and scored with a glancing header, but West Brom secured a deserved win in the final minute via aGraham Dorrans free-kick.^[27]

On 31 January, Stoke took on Manchester United atOld Trafford and were undone by two penalties either side of half time, Pennant trippingPark Ji-sung for the first and Walters pullingAntonio Valencia's arm.^[28] After the match, Pulis expressed his disappointment at the referee's decisions.^[29]

Stoke began a potentially season defining February with a second consecutive home defeat, this time to an in-form Sunderland. The match was played in falling snow which progressively got worse, meaning that there was few goalscoring chances for both sides. The match took a huge change just before half-time when Huth was sent-off for tacklingDavid Meyler, although replays showed that Huth pulled out of the challenge. Sunderland took full advantage of the extra man and scored the only goal throughJames McClean.^[30] Stoke did attempt to get Huth's red card overturned, but failed in their efforts.^[31]

Stoke then recorded their fourth-straight Premier League defeat – for the second time this season – with a 2–1 defeat at Fulham. Stoke conceded twice in the opening half hour with Fulham's new Russian strikerPavel Pogrebnyak and an own goal from Sørensen putting Martin Jol's team in a good position. City pulled one back in the second half through Ryan Shawcross, but were unable to claim a draw.^[32]

With one win in eight matches and now eliminated from the Europa League, a win against Swansea was vital for Stoke. After not really doing much in the match,Matthew Upson broke the deadlock with a header from Matthew Etherington's corner in the 24th minute and then Crouch flicked home his tenth goal of the season when he rose to meet a long throw-in from Ryan Shotton six minutes before the break. Swansea kept the ball well but failed to trouble an under worked Asmir Begović, and Stoke were able to see out a fairly comfortably 2–0 victory.^[33]

Stoke faced another newly promoted team in the form of Norwich at theBritannia Stadium. The match coincided with the 40th anniversary of Stoke's 1972 League Cup win and ironically, it was in the 72nd minute that Stoke scored the only goal of the match through Matthew Etherington, who beat goalkeeper John Ruddy from a tight angle in what was rare moment of quality in a match with few chances.^[34]

After two home wins, Stoke were narrowly beaten 1–0 at Chelsea, withDidier Drogba scoring the only goal of the match after 68 minutes. This was after Stoke had played most of the match with ten men asRicardo Fuller – making his first start of the season – was sent off early on after he stamped onBranislav Ivanović.^[35] Pulis described Fuller's actions as "ridiculous".^[36]

On 21 March, Stoke travelled to a mutedWhite Hart Lane which saw the Bolton midfielderFabrice Muamba collapse on the pitch three days before. Stoke were knocked out of the FA Cup by Liverpool and were now able to concentrate on the Premier League for the rest of the season. After containing Tottenham for most of the match, Stoke took the lead through Cameron Jerome on 75 minutes following a goalmouth scramble. Stoke, however, were denied an impressive win in the final moments asRafael van der Vaart headed in aGareth Bale cross.^[37]

Stoke's next home match saw title challengers Manchester City arrived at the Britannia Stadium and saw a contender for goal of the season scored byPeter Crouch. After a goalless first half, Stoke opened the scoring in memorable style: a long goal-kick from Begović was headed by Crouch on to Pennant, who passed back to the forward, who then took a touch and fired a volley shot past goalkeeper Joe Hart. Stoke could not hold on, however, as a long-rangeYaya Touré strike earned the visitors a share of the points.^[38]

City, now in good spirits following Peter Crouch's wonder goal the previous week, travelled to Wigan for the final match of March. The first half was a very competitive one which produced some hard tackles and few goalscoring chances. In second half, however, Wigan were by far the better side and easily won the match 2–0 thanks to goals fromAntolín Alcaraz andVictor Moses.^[39]

Wolves were Stoke's first opponents over the Easter period, who arrived in Stoke needing a win to give them any hope of avoiding the drop. Wolves took the lead in the 27th minute in rather bizarre fashion against the run of play,Michael Kightly embarked upon a run from wide on the right and when he chipped the ball into the onrushingDave Edwards, but the Welsh international midfielder's attempt to get a touch deceived Asmir Begović as it bounced past him into the net. The lead lasted just seven minutes, however, as Huth hit a powerful shot pastWayne Hennessey. Stoke all but ended Wolves' stay in the Premier League as Crouch scored the final goal of the match to secure Stoke a league double over their Midlands rivals.^[40]

Forty-eight hours later, Stoke again faced struggling Midlands opponents in the form of Aston Villa in what was another poor quality match between the two sides. After very little excitement,Andreas Weimann curled in a fine goal to give the hosts the lead. Stoke were trying in vain to draw level, so Pulis introduced the rested pair of Crouch and Pennant; the move paid off as a Pennant set piece was headed into the net by Huth to earn City a share of the points.^[41]

After a two-week break due to Everton being involved in the FA Cup semi-final, Stoke made the long trip north to Newcastle United where they came away with a heavy 3–0 loss.Yohan Cabaye proved to be Stoke's chief tormentor as he scored twice and assistedPapiss Cissé.^[42]

Arsenal were Stoke's next opponents at the Britannia Stadium and Peter Crouch scored the opening goal after just ten minutes, but Robin van Persie quickly equalised for the "Gunners". Both sides had opportunities of grabbing all three points during a frantic second 45 minutes, with Crouch and Jonathan Walters both going closest in stoppage time but the match ended on level terms.^[43]

The re-arranged match with Everton produced a dour encounter with few moments of excitement. Everton had the better of an awful first half and they scored on the stroke of half-time as Peter Crouch scored an unlucky own goal. The introduction of Ricardo Fuller and Cameron Jerome gave Stoke some life and within seconds of his arrival Jerome used his pace to accelerate through the "Toffees" defence and rescue a point for Stoke.^[44]

The final two matches of the 2011–12 season saw Stoke involved in the fight to avoid relegation with both their opponents Queens Park Rangers and Bolton in danger of joining Blackburn and Wolves inThe Football League. The match against QPR saw Stoke squander an early effort as Cameron Jerome missed an easy chance. With the match seemingly heading for a goalless draw,Djibril Cissé scored in the final few moments to spark a pitch invasion by jubilant "Rs" fans.^[45]

For the final match of a long and difficult season for Stoke, their opponents Bolton arrived in Stoke-on-Trent knowing that they had to win to remain a Premier League club, while Stoke fans dedicated the match to Ricardo Fuller, who would be out of contract at season's end. Jonathan Walters scored a controversial opening goal for Stoke as he barged into goalkeeperÁdám Bogdán, who had both hands on the ball and dropped the ball behind the line. Bolton, however, went close withKevin Davies hitting the crossbar before Bolton had a stroke of luck they needed. First, an attempted clearance from Robert Huth cannoned offMark Davies and then an attempted cross from Kevin Davies deceived Thomas Sørensen to give Bolton a shock 2–1 lead. Unfortunately for "Trotters" fans, a second-half penalty from Walters condemned them to theChampionship.^[46] Stoke ended the season in 14th place with 45 points, but a lack of goals and attacking play made it a disappointing and often boring Premier League season for the Stoke supporters.

As last season's runners-up, Stoke were drawn away against one of manager Tony Pulis' old teams:League Two sideGillingham.^[47]

Stoke survived after an early scare from theGills who started brightly and took the lead throughDanny Kedwell. Stoke made sure that there was no upset and thanks to goals fromJonathan Walters,Cameron Jerome andRobert Huth.^[48]

Over 5,500 Stoke made the short journey across theA50 to see Stoke take onDerby County. Stoke made a perfect start scoring after five minutes through Jerome. Huth hit the post with a header before Derby began to cause City problems withJamie Ward being a difficult opponent. Stoke controlled the second half and ended the contest with ten minutes left as a Pennant corner fell for Huth to fire a close range shot under the body ofFrank Fielding.^[49]

In the fifth round Stoke were handed a tricky tie at League Two high-fliersCrawley Town in what was the first meeting between the clubs.Danny Collins made a surprise start after failing to move away from the club in January and it was Crawley who made the bright start putting City's defence under pressure which led toPeter Crouch heading against his own bar. The match took a turn in the 17th minute whenRory Delap was sent-off for a tackle onDavid Hunt. This seemed to spring Stoke into life and they were awarded a soft looking penalty just before half-time which Walters put pastRene Gilmartin. Stoke scored a second goal just after the half time break through a Crouch header. TheRed Devils tried in vain to get back into the tie and Stoke booked their place in the quarter final for the third season in a row.^[50]

Stoke metLiverpool for the fourth time this season and just like in the League Cup it was theAnfield club who narrowly came away with a 2–1 victory.Luis Suárez scored the first goal against the run of play butPeter Crouch quickly equalised.Stewart Downing scored the decisive second goal to send Liverpool through.^[51]

Stoke entered the League Cup at the third round stage as they received a bye from the second round due to their involvement in the Europa League. Stoke were drawn at home to Tottenham Hotspur in what was the first meeting between the two clubs in theLeague Cup. The match was a dull uneventful affair and after 90 minutes plus extra time the tie went to apenalty shootout. After Shotton had made it 7–6 to Stoke, Tottenham's young Australian debutantMassimo Luongo kick was saved by Sørensen to end the contest.^[52]

In the fourth round, Stoke faced Liverpool at home and took the lead throughKenwyne Jones just before half time. Two second half goals fromLuis Suárez, however, sent the Merseyside club through to the quarter-final.^[53]

By reaching theFA Cup Final last season, Stoke qualified for theUEFA Europa League, afterManchester City confirmed a place in theUEFA Champions League.^[54] Stoke entered at the third qualifying round as cup runners-up where they were drawn againstCroatian sideHajduk Split.^[55]

There was great anticipation ahead of Stoke's first European match since 1974 and Stoke made a perfect start, scoring the first goal after just three minutes via Jonathan Walters. Stoke, however, were left frustrated in their attempts to extend their lead, meaning that City took a narrow lead toSplit for the second leg.^[56]

In Croatia, over 28,000 Hajduk fans created a unique atmosphere for the second leg, asJonathan Woodgate made his debut in place ofAndy Wilkinson who missed out due to injury. Stoke were content to allow Hajduk have possession and were able to keep the hosts from troublingAsmir Begović. Stoke sealed their place in the play-off round in the second half injury time whenRyan Shotton bundled the ball past goalkeeperDanijel Subašić.^[57][58] The result also meant that Stoke had won their first ever European round after two previous failed attempts back in the 1970s.

Stoke were drawn againstSwiss sideFC Thun in the final qualifying round. Thun caused a shock result in the previous round as they defeated the much fancied Italian sidePalermo.^[59] The first leg inThun was played on an artificial pitch much to the annoyance of Tony Pulis.Matthew Upson made his debut for Stoke asDanny Pugh scored the only goal of the match after nineteen minutes. It got worse for Thun as their goalkeeper,David Da Costa, was sent-off in the final few moments of the match.^[60]

The second leg proved to a very one sided affair with Stoke scoring three times in the opening first 40 minutes through Matthew Upson,Kenwyne Jones andGlenn Whelan. Jones scored a fourth for City in the second half as Stoke claimed an historic group stage place. The Swiss scored a consolation throughAndreas Wittwer.^[61]

In the group stage, Stoke were drawn againstBeşiktaş,Dynamo Kyiv andMaccabi Tel Aviv meaning that Stoke will have to travel a total of 11,000 miles for their away matches.

Stoke's first ever group stage match saw them travel to Ukrainian giantsDynamo Kyiv. Pulis made eight changes from the side that beat Liverpool withCameron Jerome handed his debut. The hosts had famous strikerAndriy Shevchenko in their team and it was he who caused City's defence most problems with his movement and skill. After a goalless first half, Stoke took the lead with their first shot on target through Jerome. City then had to withstand heavy pressure from Dynamo withOleksandr Aliyev andBrown Ideye going close to equalising. Stoke, however, were denied a famous victory right at the end whenOgnjen Vukojević tapped in from close range.^[62]

Stoke's first home match in the group stage was against Turkish cup winnersBeşiktaş in what was a historic night at the Britannia Stadium.The Black Eagles took the lead throughRoberto Hilbert after he was played in by the dangerousRicardo Quaresma. Stoke, however, hit back instantly with Peter Crouch scoring his second goal in as many matches. City dominated the second half with Beşiktaş sitting back and trying to mount counterattacks via Quaresma. In the 78th minute, Stoke were awarded a penalty when Crouch was fouled byTomáš Sivok, and Jonathan Walters smashed his spot kick past goalkeeperRüştü Reçber to move Stoke to the top of the group.^[63]

Israeli sideMaccabi Tel Aviv arrived inStoke-on-Trent bottom of the group and after 12 minutes Jones powered his header pastGuy Haimov. Jerome added a second ten minutes later before setting up Shotton to make it 3–0 to Stoke. Jerome had an eventful first half and after being show a yellow card for dissent he received a second for an apparent elbow on left backYoav Ziv. In the second half, Ziv himself was sent off in bizarre circumstances: after being unhappy with not being awarded a free-kick, he kicked his displaced boot at the linesman and, after a short consultation between the officials, was sent off.^[64][65]

Stoke next match saw them travel toTel Aviv for the return fixture against Maccabi.Danny Higginbotham made his first appearance since March after returning from injury. ThePotters won the match 2–1 with goals fromDean Whitehead and Peter Crouch whileRoberto Colautti scored for the home side. The result left Stoke requiring a point to qualify.^[66] Pulis admitted that his side was rarely troubled by a lesser opponent.^[67]

Stoke got the point they needed in the next match against Dynamo on 1 December, however it looked very unlikely as the Ukrainian giants produced a commanding first-half display, frustrating Stoke with their slow style and they took the lead whenOleksandr Aliyev's shot deflected in off Matthew Upson. Dynamo almost doubled their lead through Shevchenko, but his shot hit the post. Stoke improved in the second half and pulled level ten minutes from full-time via a powerful header from Jones to claim an historic place in the knock-out stage.^[68] Pulis described the achievement as a "milestone" in the club's history.^[69]

The final match of the group stage saw Stoke take a second string side to the noisyBJK İnönü Stadium. Stoke took the lead viaRicardo Fuller after 30 minutes, however the game changed when Matthew Upson fouledHugo Almeida to concede a penalty kick was sent off.Manuel Fernandes scored the penalty and Beşiktaş went on to win 3–1 to claim top spot in the group and end Stoke's unbeaten European run.^[70] There were a few incidents in the match were Stoke's players were pelted with objects from the crowd; Pulis later said that the club will not complain toUEFA.^[71]

Stoke were handed a glamour tie against Spanish giantsValencia in the round of 32; following the draw, Pulis stated that he is relishing the prospect of taking on one of Europe's top clubs.^[72]

Valencia arrived in Stoke-on-Trent third inLa Liga and went into the tie as clear favourites. Stoke almost opened the scoring very early on but Walters dragged his shot wide ofVicente Guaita goal.Los Che slowly started to control the match and took the lead through a fine long-range effort fromMehmet Topal. The Spaniards quick movement and skill continued to cause Stoke problems, with Brazilian internationalJonas proving a difficult opponent. Stoke tried hard to pull level in the second half, but it was Valencia who almost scored again asSofiane Feghouli hit the post.^[73]

For the second leg inValencia, Stoke took a largely reserve side and named just four substitutes which included academy captainLucas Dawson. This attracted much criticism of Pulis by supporters but he defended his choice.^[74] Around 5,000 City fans were in theMestalla Stadium to see Stoke take on one of Europe's top clubs.Kenwyne Jones had two brilliant chances early on and Stoke would rue those missed chances as Valencia scored the only goal of the match through Jonas. Stoke lost 2–0 on aggregate and exited the Europa League.^[75]

Stoke City vHajduk Split

28 July 20111st leg	Stoke City	1–0	Hajduk Split	Stoke-on-Trent
	Walters 3' Huth 82'	Report		Stadium:Britannia Stadium Attendance: 26,322 Referee:Babak Rafati (Germany)

Hajduk Split vStoke City

4 August 20112nd leg	Hajduk Split	0–1	Stoke City	Split,Croatia
	Miličević 29' Andrić 37' Sarić 89'	Report	Begović 61' Whitehead 63' Pennant 81' Etherington 90' Milicevic 90+3' (o.g.)	Stadium:Stadion Poljud Attendance: 29,548 Referee: Andrea De Marco (Italy)

Stoke City won 2–0 on aggregate.

Thun vStoke City

18 August 20111st leg	Thun	0–1	Stoke City	Thun,Switzerland
	Bättig 33' Da Costa 90'	Report	Pugh 19' Huth 21' Tonge 31' Etherington 46' Walters 90+5'	Stadium:Arena Thun Attendance: 7,850 Referee:Daniel Stålhammar (Sweden)

Stoke City vThun

25 August 20112nd leg	Stoke City	4–1	Thun	Stoke-on-Trent
	Upson 24' Jones 30',71' Whelan 37' Whitehead 38'	Report	Lüthi 36' Wittwer 77'	Stadium:Britannia Stadium Attendance: 24,148 Referee:Marcin Borski (Poland)

Stoke City won 5–1 on aggregate.

Dynamo Kyiv vStoke City

15 September 2011Match 1	Dynamo Kyiv	1–1	Stoke City	Kyiv,Ukraine
	Harmash 44' Milevskyi 48' Popov 56' Haruna 65' Vukojević 90'	Report	Diao 15' Shawcross 39' Upson 42' Huth 44' Jerome 55'	Stadium:Lobanovskyi Dynamo Stadium Attendance: 14,500 Referee:Ovidiu Hațegan (Romania)

Stoke City vBeşiktaş

29 September 2011Match 2	Stoke City	2–1	Beşiktaş	Stoke-on-Trent
	Crouch 15' Upson 42' Walters 78' (pen.) Whelan 82'	Report	Hilbert 14' Sivok 78'	Stadium:Britannia Stadium Attendance: 23,551 Referee:Antony Gautier (France)

Stoke City vMaccabi Tel Aviv

20 October 2011Match 3	Stoke City	3–0	Maccabi Tel Aviv	Stoke-on-Trent
	Jones 12' Jerome 24', 33'  42' Shotton 31' Huth 68'	Report	Ziv 54' Micha 77' Colautti 77'	Stadium:Britannia Stadium Attendance: 22,759 Referee:Anastassios Kakos (Greece)

Maccabi Tel Aviv vStoke City

3 November 2011Match 4	Maccabi Tel Aviv	1–2	Stoke City	Tel Aviv,Israel
	Cohen 12' Punčec 32' Colautti 90'	Report	Jones 35' Whitehead 51' Crouch 64' Sørensen 90+3'	Stadium:Bloomfield Stadium Attendance: 10,368 Referee:Duarte Gomes (Portugal)

Stoke City vDynamo Kyiv

1 December 2011Match 5	Stoke City	1–1	Dynamo Kyiv	Stoke-on-Trent
	Huth 76' Jones 80'	Report	Yarmolenko 7' Upson 27' (o.g.) Khacheridi 84'	Stadium:Britannia Stadium Attendance: 23,774 Referee:Florian Meyer (Germany)

Beşiktaş vStoke City

14 December 2011Match 6	Beşiktaş	3–1	Stoke City	Istanbul,Turkey
	Fernandes 58' (pen.) Hilbert 61' Pektemek 74' Edu 82', 90+2'	Report	Fuller 26', 29' Begović 43' Upson 57'	Stadium:BJK İnönü Stadium Attendance: 29,000 Referee:Marcin Borski (Poland)

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Beşiktaş	6	4	0	2	13	7	+6	12	Advance toknockout phase
2	Stoke City	6	3	2	1	10	7	+3	11
3	Dynamo Kyiv	6	1	4	1	7	7	0	7
4	Maccabi Tel Aviv	6	0	2	4	8	17	−9	2

Stoke City vValencia

16 February 20121st leg	Stoke City	0–1	Valencia	Stoke-on-Trent
	Shawcross 54' Etherington 83' Walters 84' Whitehead 85' Wilkinson 90+3'	Report	Topal 36' Rami 73' T. Costa 85'	Stadium:Britannia Stadium Attendance: 24,185 Referee:Peter Rasmussen (Denmark)

Valencia vStoke City

23 February 20122nd leg	Valencia	1–0	Stoke City	Valencia,Spain
	Jonas 24' Dealbert 77' Soldado 89'	Report	Diao 30' Huth 68' Pennant 73' Jones 77' Shotton 81'	Stadium:Estadio Mestalla Attendance: 35,000 Referee:Markus Strömbergsson (Sweden)

Stoke City lost 2–0 on aggregate.

No.	Pos.	Name	Premier League		FA Cup		League Cup		UEFA Europa League		Total		Discipline
			Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
1	GK	Asmir Begović	22(1)	0	3	0	0	0	5	0	30(1)	0	2	0
3	DF	Danny Higginbotham	1(1)	0	0	0	0	0	3	0	4(1)	0	0	0
4	DF	Robert Huth	31(3)	3	3	2	2	0	10	0	46(3)	5	15	1
5	DF	Danny Collins	0	0	1	0	0	0	1(1)	0	2(1)	0	0	0
6	MF	Glenn Whelan	27(3)	1	3(1)	0	2	0	4(3)	1	37(6)	2	7	0
8	MF	Tom Soares	0	0	0	0	0	0	0(1)	0	0(1)	0	0	0
9	FW	Kenwyne Jones	10(11)	1	1(1)	0	2	1	10	4	23(12)	6	2	0
10	FW	Ricardo Fuller	3(10)	0	0(2)	0	0	0	2(1)	1	5(13)	1	3	1
11	FW	Mamady Sidibé	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
12	DF	Marc Wilson	35	0	2	0	2	0	6	0	45	0	9	0
14	MF	Danny Pugh	0(3)	0	0	0	0	0	2(1)	1	2(4)	1	0	0
15	MF	Salif Diao	2(4)	0	0	0	0(1)	0	6(1)	0	8(6)	0	3	0
16	MF	Jermaine Pennant	18(9)	0	0(2)	0	1(1)	0	5(4)	0	24(16)	0	4	0
17	DF	Ryan Shawcross (c)	36	2	4	0	1	0	8	0	49	2	12	0
18	MF	Dean Whitehead	24(9)	0	3(1)	0	0	0	6(4)	1	33(14)	1	9	0
19	FW	Jonathan Walters	38	7	4	2	1(1)	0	6(4)	2	49(5)	11	5	0
20	DF	Matthew Upson	10(4)	1	2	0	1	0	8	1	21(4)	2	3	1
21	DF	Andrew Davies	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
23	MF	Michael Tonge	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	1	0	1	0
24	MF	Rory Delap	18(8)	2	2(1)	0	1	0	6	0	27(9)	2	5	1
25	FW	Peter Crouch	31(1)	10	3	2	0(2)	0	2(1)	2	36(4)	14	2	0
26	MF	Matthew Etherington	30	3	2	0	2	0	6	0	40	3	4	0
27	GK	Carlo Nash	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
28	DF	Andy Wilkinson	20(5)	0	2(1)	0	0	0	6(2)	0	28(8)	0	8	0
29	GK	Thomas Sørensen	16	0	1	0	2	0	7	0	26	0	2	0
30	DF	Ryan Shotton	14(9)	1	3	0	2	0	5(5)	1	24(14)	2	3	0
32	MF	Diego Arismendi	0	0	0	0	0	0	2(2)	0	2(2)	0	1	0
33	FW	Cameron Jerome	7(16)	4	3(1)	2	1(1)	0	6(1)	2	17(19)	8	1	1
35	FW	Ben Marshall	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
36	MF	Matthew Lund	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
38	MF	Florent Cuvelier	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
39	DF	Jonathan Woodgate	16(1)	0	1	0	1	0	2	0	20(1)	0	3	0
40	MF	Wilson Palacios	9(9)	0	1	0	1	0	7(1)	0	18(10)	0	2	0
41	MF	Michael Clarkson	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
42	FW	Louis Moult	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
44	MF	Lucas Dawson	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
–	–	Own goals	–	1	–	0	–	0	–	1	–	2	–	–

Date	Pos.	Name	From	Fee	Ref.
11 July 2011	DF	Jonathan Woodgate	Tottenham Hotspur	Free	[76]
9 August 2011	DF	Matthew Upson	West Ham United	Free	[77]
31 August 2011	MF	Wilson Palacios	Tottenham Hotspur	Undisclosed	[78]
31 August 2011	MF	Cameron Jerome	Birmingham City	Undisclosed	[79][80]
31 August 2011	FW	Peter Crouch	Tottenham Hotspur	£10,000,000	[81]

Date	Pos.	Name	To	Fee	Ref.
27 May 2011	DF	Abdoulaye Faye	West Ham United	Free	[82][83]
27 August 2011	DF	Ibrahima Sonko	Ipswich Town	Free	[84]
31 May 2011	FW	Eiður Guðjohnsen	AEK Athens	Free	[84]
29 July 2011	DF	Carl Dickinson	Watford	Undisclosed	[85]
2 January 2012	MF	Danny Pugh	Leeds United	Undisclosed	[86]
31 January 2012	MF	Ben Marshall	Leicester City	Undisclosed	[87]

Date from	Date to	Pos.	Name	To	Ref.
26 July 2011	21 November 2011	MF	Matty Lund	Oldham Athletic	[88]
3 August 2011	3 September 2011	DF	Andrew Davies	Crystal Palace	[89]
17 August 2011	1 January 2012	FW	Ben Marshall	Sheffield Wednesday	[90]
19 August 2011	19 September 2011	FW	Louis Moult	Accrington Stanley	[91]
9 August 2011	11 December 2011	DF	Danny Collins	Ipswich Town	[92]
22 September 2011	1 January 2012	DF	Danny Pugh	Leeds United	[93]
23 September 2011	30 June 2012	DF	Andrew Davies	Bradford City	[94]
23 January 2012	30 June 2012	MF	Tom Soares	Hibernian	[95]
24 January 2012	30 June 2012	MF	Michael Tonge	Barnsley	[96]
27 January 2012	27 February 2012	FW	Ryan Brunt	Tranmere Rovers	[97][98]
27 January 2012	27 February 2012	MF	Florent Cuvelier	Walsall	[99]
30 January 2012	30 February 2012	MF	Matty Lund	Bristol Rovers	[100][101]
31 January 2012	30 June 2012	DF	Danny Higginbotham	Nottingham Forest	[102][103][104]
9 March 2012	30 June 2012	DF	Danny Collins	West Ham United	[105][106]
16 March 2012	30 June 2012	MF	Diego Arismendi	Huddersfield Town	[107]

• 2011–12 Premier League by team
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