The former Premier League midfielder has been critical of Stoke City fans amid criticism of Mark Hughes.
In recent times a selection of Stoke City supporters have been increasingly disaffected with proceedings at the Bet365 Stadium – with manager Mark Hughes facing criticism at seemingly regular intervals.
However, former Premier League midfielder Robbie Savage has leapt to the defence of the Stoke boss – by suggesting that fans of the Potters expect too much.
Savage, now a pundit for the BBC and on BT Sport, was addressing suggestions that Stoke fans are not happy with Hughes and the progress being made at the Bet365 Stadium.
Since taking over from Tony Pulis in May 2013, Hughes has guided Stoke to their best ever Premier League finish of 9th, before repeating the feat in the following two seasons.
Hughes has also overseen a change in playing style since the Pulis era – which has seen the former Wales manager sign the likes of Marco Arnautovic, Bojan, Xherdan Shaqiri and Joe Allen in recent years.
Savage, who was under Hughes’ tutelage at Blackburn Rovers and Wales during his own playing career, emphasised the merits of three successive top half finishes, before referencing the expectation levels from fans of the club by saying:
‘What do the Stoke fans expect? I think a few of them are clueless… OK, they watch Stoke City every single week, but I think, the way he’s [Hughes] changed the philosophy, the way he’s brought in Shaqiri and [Ibrahim] Affelay, and now they’ve got [Saido] Berahino – and Arnautovic is an outstanding player… and Stoke fans now, they’re expecting too much.
Savage’s expression of ‘clueless’ Stoke fans prompted many of the supporters to respond on Twitter to the comments – with many observers slamming Savage for a perceived bias towards past colleague Hughes.
Reaction from ‘Stokies’ ranged from accusing Savage of ignorance based on the fact that he does not see Stoke week-in, week-out, to a sense of agreement with Savage’s views.
Here is a taste of the reaction on Twitter to Robbie Savage’s comments on Stoke City fans:
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