- Stoke leads all-time 23W-20D-21L
- Sides have split since 2011
- Swans 13th, Stoke 15th
One of the Premier League’s most-even match-ups is on display Monday afternoon at the Liberty Stadium in Wales (Watch live, 3 p.m. ET on NBCSN and online via Live Extra).
Stoke City and Swansea City are separated by just a single point on the table, and have split points every year they’ve played dating back to 2011. Prior to that, Swans won a pair of 2-1 matches in 2001.
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The Potters have won only one of their last 18 visits to the Liberty Stadium.
It’s a step forward for Stoke, which started miserably before drawing Leicester and then beating Bournemouth and Aston Villa.
As for Swans, they’ve struggled since defeating Manchester United five matches ago. Garry Monk’s side has lost to Watford and Southampton away, but drawn Everton and Spurs at home.
What they’re saying
Stoke’s Xherdan Shaqiri on his Premier League transition: “English football is a little different to me but it is the best football in the world, and I feel I am getting more used to it the more I play. Of course, I need some time to evolve in the team and understand all the players on the pitch but I am getting better.”
Monk says it’s time to focus on club play: “It’s important that the players put that to bed now and concentrate on their football here until the summer and Euro 2016. I’ve spoken to them and they are fully aware of that.
“We had two good games against Stoke last season and we enjoyed those battles. They have shown their quality in recent weeks and we’ll be expecting another tough game on Monday.”
Prediction
Here are a pair of sides who are far lower on the table than their individual quality suggests, and there’s not much to separate them. Both are willing to play open, flowing soccer; This is one to enjoy. Forced to pick between the two, we like the home side to take the next step up the table. Andre Ayew scores, and Swans take a 2-1 win.
