Stoke City: Pulis eyes lengthy Britannia stay

TONY Pulis has indicated openly for the first time that he will see out his managerial days at Stoke City.

Pulis, who first joined the club nearly a decade ago, sees no reason why he would want to manage anywhere else before retiring from the game.

He said Saturday's 4-2 defeat at Manchester United provided further evidence of Stoke developing a better style of play.

But he says it's a development that must proceed at a sensible pace – and he and the owners have the time to see the job through.

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"We are trying to evolve and we have got better players, but you have to get a balance and there's no rush," said Pulis.

"I'm hoping to be here for a few more years and hoping the Coates family will be, so we have to move it up gradually.

"That will suit some people but not others because they want immediate success. But it takes time and it's the way to do it, we think."

He believes it is a vision shared by chairman Peter Coates, adding: "There's no problem with Peter… I just hope he lives for another 40 or 50 years.

"I don't see myself going anywhere else. I've got fantastic respect for the place and the area. It's a tough area.

"They say what they think, but they are hard-working, honest people and I enjoy the football club."

But he insists he will also stay true to his own footballing principles when it comes to adapting Stoke's style of play.

"We know we are trying to evolve for the team to play through the pitch quickly. I will never change my views on that," he explained.

"We want smaller, quicker passes, but always through the pitch, not backwards or square."

Pulis checked on next Saturday's opposition when he watched Martin O'Neill's Sunderland take on Newcastle in yesterday's 1-1 derby draw, commenting: "We need to pick up some points after a really tough start, but it's always tough against Martin's teams."

Meanwhile, Pulis said players had the right in this country to choose whether or not to support the 'Kick It Out' campaign against racism.

Striker Kenwyne Jones was the only Stoke player not to wear the 'Kick It Out' shirt in the pre-match warm up on Saturday.

Rio Ferdinand also didn't wear the T-shirt in protest against what some believe is the campaign's failure to stamp out racism in football.

MARTIN SPINKS