Stoke City: The genius decision Narcis Pelach made to unleash memorable Tom Cannon display - View | OneFootball

The Potters boss decided to play Sam Gallagher alongside Cannon against Portsmouth, and it paid dividends

Few would have expected Stoke to thrash Portsmouth 6-1 on Wednesday night to record Narcis Pelach's first win as Potters boss, but it was the Spainard's key selection decision that helped his attackers blossom at the visitors' expense.

Stoke headed into the midweek clash at the bet365 Stadium needing a victory to get Pelach's first three points on the board, and a tense affair was expected, given Portsmouth's similarly poor form that had left them in the relegation zone ahead of their trip to the Midlands.

That was not the story of the evening, though, as despite being level at 1-1 on the half-hour mark, the Potters soon ran away with the game and eventually stuck six past a hapless Will Norris in the Pompey net to secure their biggest league victory in nine years and make a real statement for the new head-coach.

Tom Cannon was the pick of the Potters' bunch with a four-goal haul to get off the mark for the season in spectacular style, and Pelach's decision to start him up front alongside summer signing Sam Gallagher was certainly vindicated, as the pair linked up impressively throughout the game, and the former Blackburn man also got on the scoresheet.

Tom Cannon and Sam Gallagher put on a show against Portsmouth

Both Cannon and Gallagher have had tough starts to life as Stoke players respectively, for different reasons though, with the former struggling to affect games he was playing in, while the latter had to wait until late September to even play due to injury, but those rough patches should be put firmly behind them after Wednesday's exploits.

Pelach was able to start two recognised strikers together for the first time in his short tenure so far, and deployed Gallagher in a second-striker role just behind the Leicester loanee, which already looked to be working early on as Stoke enjoyed the bulk of the chances thanks to their link-up play.

It was Gallagher who won the foul with 12 minutes on the clock for Cannon to step up to the free-kick and blast past Pompey 'keeper Norris for his first in red and white, and the 29-year-old soon thought he had bagged his own maiden Potters strike just ten minutes later, but for it to be dubiously ruled offside.

With the scores levelled again by Portsmouth's Mark O'Mahony, Stoke's front two soon linked up to devastating effect with two minutes of the first half left, as Gallagher threaded the ball through for Cannon to run onto it and fire first-time into the net to give the Potters the lead again.

It was the kind of forward play that the 21-year-old had not shown for Stoke in his first few games of the season, but the presence and intelligence of Gallagher made so much difference to his, and the team's, confidence in forward areas.

The former Blackburn man was not done there though, as on the stroke of half-time he picked the ball up just outside the box and unleashed a thunderous strike into the top right corner for 3-1, showing that he has an eye for goal alongside good hold-up play and unselfish off-the-ball work.

Even without the help of his strike partner, who was taken off to be rested not long into the second-half, Cannon proved just how lethal he can be when he is on form, with two more strikes in the second-half to bag four goals on the night and become the first Stoke player in 24 years to score that many in one game.

Pelach may well have found the answer to his striking woes with Cannon and Gallagher as a duo in attack, and he called the latter's performance against Portsmouth "unbelievable," so it should be the case that he plans on playing them both together going forward to get the best out of the team's abundance of talent in forward areas, starting with their upcoming trip to Swansea City.

Gallagher is well-known for his strike partnerships

Gallagher has never been the most consistent scorer for a striker throughout his career, but made his name as being an excellent foil to some clinical frontmen in his time with Blackburn, and that may be the case once again at Stoke alongside Cannon.

He first joined Rovers on loan in 2016, and formed a strong partnership in attack throughout the season with Danny Graham, as they notched 12 and 13 goals each in all competitions respectively, as the Devon-born forward first proved that he was stronger when playing alongside another striker.

He returned to Ewood Park for good in 2019, and once again struck up a good partnership with a more clinical striker in Adam Armstrong, as they combined for seven goals across two seasons, and the former Newcastle man bagged 17 and 29 times respectively in both campaigns, and Gallagher netted seven and eight times respectively.

Armstrong soon left for Southampton, but Ben Brereton Diaz' emergence saw Rovers get even better, and a lot of the Chilean's success could be attributed to Gallagher's selfless play to allow the likes of him, Tyrhys Dolan and Reda Khadra to help the team finish eighth in the Championship in 2020/21.

Diaz and Gallagher bagged a combined 31 goals in 2021/22, then another 24 combined in 2022/23 as Jon Dahl Tomasson's side finished just outside of the play-offs on goal difference, so it is clear to see just how impactful he can be to helping a previously out-of-form striker find their feet to help a team up the table.

Last season saw his minutes limited due to injury, but he was still a key part of the Rovers side that avoided relegation, and the team was better with him in it, as Sammie Szmodics finished as top-scorer for the Championship with some outstanding form in attacking midfield playing just behind the 29-year-old.

It is definitely no coincidence that Gallagher has been playing alongside numerous strikers when they have produced some of the best form of their respective careers, and he certainly showed promise to continue that at Stoke alongside Cannon in their first outing together against Portsmouth.