Potterlytics

"The entirety of Stoke City's plan for the club hinges on a Fear of Missing Out. There's no issue with learning from what successful clubs are doing, but it's never done with a depth of understanding of why those ideas are working at those clubs." potterlytics.blog/2024/12/19/les…

"The entirety of Stoke City's plan for the club hinges on a Fear of Missing Out. There's no issue with learning from what successful clubs are doing, but it's never done with a depth of understanding of why those ideas are working at those clubs." potterlytics.blog/2024/12/19/les…

Forgive me one last untethered, weirdly nonsensical and completely unstructured rant. Thank you all, again ❤️ More Like Gone-erlytics, Am I Right? potterlytics.blog/2025/04/06/mor…

"In Mark Robins' time as manager, he's reduced the number of shots Stoke concede per game from 16.7 to 12.1. The xG conceded per game has reduced from 1.61 to 1.09. The number of 'big chances' (>0.2xG) conceded per game has gone down from 1.94 to 1.26."

A second preview plot for what's in store. 15 games into Mark Robins' reign, only the last 3 of Pélach and the 2 Shawcross games are keeping us in the red in underlying numbers.

Is Mark Robins improving Stoke? Two graphs to preview the upcoming article below. Red means more defensive actions (tackles/interceptions/blocks etc.) than league average for that zone, blue means fewer than league average. My last article, coming tonight...

@lewisadams191 😂😂

@potterlytics I hear potterlytics new job is at portvale 👀👀 valelytics incoming

@greenhoff1972 Watch this space 😄

@potterlytics Any update on the famous xG chart ?

Thank you all for everything, it's been a blast. Goarrrrrn Stoke🔴⚪️❤️

It has been an absolute joy to cover Stoke's data and analysis on here for the last 2 and a half years. Hopefully I've helped bring an understanding of football data/analysis to a few more Stoke fans than before I started, and hopefully someone fills in this niche when I leave! >

🔴Comunicado oficial⚪️ I'm afraid to say the Potterlytics blog & social media will soon be put into an indefinite hibernation. I've been offered the chance to pursue a new, amazing role in football, & I'm so excited to get started! One last blog coming in the next few days 🥹🥲

@Dave50525946 @_lg_1972 I think the fact we’ve had so many in various roles be ‘not very good’ in the transfer market is precisely why we’re badly run. We’ve chosen 15million different directions, & only once have we stayed with it for > a season before yanking the entire club in the opposite direction.

@potterlytics @_lg_1972 We are not very good in the transfer market. Simple as. We do lots of very good things in other areas and are not “badly run”. We were much more badly run when all looked rosy with the 1st team

It consistently upsets me to hear that Stoke's only plan for working under PSR is 'it won't be around forever'. They're not going to remove all constraints, & I have no confidence at all that we'll learn how to work under whatever comes next. 'We need to be clever' isn't a plan.

@Dave50525946 @_lg_1972 I don’t think literally every good thing we’ve done has been luck, but I refuse to accept we’re a well-run club that’s been unlucky. Making the same mistakes over and over and over again and getting bad results isn’t ‘unlucky’

@Dave50525946 @_lg_1972 I said this at the time in fairness! we’ve made some great signings, & summer of 2023 wasn’t entirely bad -if a bit overspend-y -we then spent another £1.5m on a striker while loaning out a £3m one among other mistakes last summer & sacked 2 managers. We’ve not just been unlucky.

@Dave50525946 Our definition of 'as much as we possibly can' leaves almost no headroom for the following seasons, after spending it all in 1 window doesn't immediately make us world-beaters We're a club based on 'it'll be fine, this will work' with no planning for the future if it doesn't work

@potterlytics We spend as much as we possibly can at any given time. The spending has been entrusted to rubbish managers who have largely wasted it. Spend the vast sums well and no one says anything. Stoke city outside the premier league will always sail close to the FFP limits

@Dave50525946 I fundamentally disagree with it being seen as 'good' I don't think a well-run club is forced into doing it. We don't spend intelligently, we throw all our budget into 1 window in the hopes 'it'll all click', then sack everyone when it doesn't & complain that we can't spend more

@potterlytics That’s it though isn’t it. Do something crap and there is no unlucky about it. Do something good and it’s lucky. We will continue to spend whatever we can and that will always mean being tight to FFP. If we were good no one would say a word.