"Things went wrong at Coventry" - Sky Sports pundit issues Stoke City, Mark Robins claim | OneFootball

The Potters appointed the former Coventry City boss on New Year's Day after sacking Narcis Pelach in December.

Don Goodman has called for patience following Mark Robins' appointment as Stoke City manager, and has stated that he is "keen to see how things play out" in the coming months.

The Potters hired the former Coventry City boss on New Year's Day after Narcis Pelach was relieved of his duties at the bet365 Stadium following a disastrous few months in charge of the club.

It's been an incredibly tough season for the Staffordshire outfit, and they will be hoping that the 55-year-old can start to take them away from the threat of relegation, with Hull City in 22nd, just four points behind them.

Robins has a huge task at hand to make the changes needed to eliminate this fear for Stoke, although there will be some fears after a difficult start to the campaign at the CBS Arena.

Goodman issues verdict on Robins' appointment

The new Potters manager had been out of work since the start of November, and he will be hoping to repeat the success that he had with Coventry in the next few years.

However, this will be difficult, and Stoke need to be rebuilt from the ground up to ensure that Robins has the talent needed to push on once this season has concluded.

Sky Sports pundit Goodman has given his opinion on the appointment, and whether it is the best that the Staffordshire club could have made.

Speaking to Plejmo.com, he said: "Stoke City are in a difficult spot at the moment. They've got really good owners and in John Walters, a sporting director who has Stoke City running through his veins. In sacking Narcis Pelach, they've admitted to making a mistake. It was a really poor appointment and the pressure is well and truly on.

"I'm really keen to see how things play out at Stoke. On face value, Mark Robins looks like a really safe appointment. But we must acknowledge that things went wrong at Coventry this season after Doug King made it clear that a fall out between Adi Viveash and Mark Robins was the reason that the long standing assistant left in the summer. Adi Viveash was hugely influential on the training ground and in making tactical decisions.

"It clearly didn't work with the new coaching team that came in at Coventry and now there's no Adi Viveash at Stoke. I hope it goes well for Mark and that Paul Nevin and James Rowberry are positive appointments because, if not, people will speculate whether he can have real success without Adi Viveash at his side."

Goodman continued: "Stoke have had problems at both ends of the pitch. They were giving away so many chances and conceded two goals in each of Narcis Pelach's last six games which meant they would have to score three goals in order to win games. Three consecutive clean sheets is encouraging, however, the problem is that they also struggle to score goals.

"I'm just curious how it will all play out because Mark Robins was a brilliant manager for Coventry and I hope it goes well for him."

Robins has to take Stoke away from any relegation threat

Robins picked up a point in his first game as Stoke manager against Plymouth Argyle, who mutually agreed to part ways with Wayne Rooney on New Year's Eve, and he may have been hoping for a better start to life at the bet365 Stadium.

It was a frustrating game for the Potters, but it has given them something to build on, and they will head into their clash with Sunderland in the FA Cup third round on Saturday looking for a shock result.

Nevertheless, the focus for Robins will be on the league, and escaping the relegation battle before the run-in gets truly serious.

Stoke do have players that will help them push towards mid-table, but strengthening in the January window will be key, and their new boss has a huge task at hand to ensure that they do not make any mistakes this month.