THE defeat against Fulham continued our run of poor form and only added to the belief of many Stoke fans that we look a better team when we play with two wingers at the same time, rather than just one.

It was interesting to hear one of our coaching team say, before kick-off at Craven Cottage, that we can’t always afford the luxury of playing two wingers.

I say ‘interesting’ as in actual fact the statistics suggest we are a far more effective team when we play with both of our out-and-out wide men on the pitch.

In 11 games where Pennant and Etherington have featured together prominently this season we have a record of five wins, four draws and just two defeats.

In the 14 matches where we have not fielded them both, of these two players our record is three wins, two draws and nine defeats.

Of course, bare stats like that one don’t always tell the whole story, of how games develop, the contributions of individuals and the influence certain players exert on proceedings, but they do seem to strongly suggest we are at our best when we play a system similar to the one which saw us flying towards the end of last season and playing the best football I can recall seeing for many, many years down at Stoke.

There is also the added factor that a manager is possibly not thinking about just the one game supporters are fixated on, but has to consider his squad and the games which are coming up on the fixture list.

It’s not an easy job and I don’t envy TP and his team one little bit for having to produce results and appease the fans. the job they have to do to both produce results on the pitch and also try to appease supporter sentiment.

But I do though know what I can see with my own two eyes and hHowever we make it in the end, I just hope we can get back to where we were for that golden spell last season and the purposeful and entertaining football we were playing back then.

We could dig through the bones of the Fulham defeat, for several hundred more words as there’s plenty to discuss. But I would though, just for this moment, prefer to look ahead towards the game against Spanish giants Valencia on Thursdaynight.

Without doubt, in my min it is one of the biggest occasions in the history of Stoke City Football Club.

Only three times in our existence have we qualified for European football and, after our first-round exits on the first occasions back in the 1970s, we have now this season fought our way through 10 games, thousands of miles of travel and a ‘Group of Death’ to find ourselves in the final 32 teams of the Europa League.

It’s not my place to advise people on how they should spend their hard-earned cash, especially in these belt-tightening times, but I really do hope we have a full-house of Stokies at the Britannia Stadium for the first leg of this tie on Thursday evening. If some can’t afford it then fair enough, and there will be some who have likewise with those for whom work and travel factors are an issues. But I am left wondering what’s going on in the mind of those fans who will may be stay away and watch on TV out of choice, I am left wonder what lies behind their decision.

You certainly hope it’s not the case but iIt is entirely possible we may not see the Potters performing in Europe again for quite some time to come.

Indeed, the chance to see our team in this setting, on this stage and against such illustrious opponents might never come again for some of us, so we must grasp this historic opportunity with both hands.

If we don’t aspire to do well in the Europa League then what dreams do we have? Avoiding relegation in the Premier League every season? That certainly helps to pay the bills but it’s not what makes for legends and memories which can be passed down to future generations of Stokie fans.

If we can be almost guaranteed a full house for a Premier League game against Wigan, then it would be difficult to understand if the Brit wasn’t sold out for Stokies for a game against Valencia.

I was fortunate enough to be in Split back in July, when I fulfilled a lifetime’s ambition of seeing Stoke play in Europe and there’s no doubt in my mind this game against Valencia is one of the biggest and most important in our history.

Not only would a good result stand on its own merits, it would also set the stage for another incredible occasion in Spain next week when thousands of Stokies will be hitting the Costa Blanca to see their team play at the impressive and cavernous Estadio Mestalla.

Despite our recent Premier League woes, we haven’t become a terrible team overnight.

We can, and I’m sure we will, pull things around again before too long and, in the meantime, have these two great games against Valencia to look forward to, not to mention the very real prospect of reaching the FA Cup quarter-finals for the third successive season if we can get past Crawley Town on Sunday.

I’m as concerned about anyone about our league form, but I am looking forward to our next three games with a genuine sense of optimism and hopeful expectation.