Source: PA
Pulis proud after Whitehead opens Potters account
Tony Pulis believes Dean Whitehead is now fully settled at Stoke after the midfielder netted his first goal for the club last weekend.
Whitehead, who arrived at the Britannia Stadium in July after five years with Sunderland, finally opened his Potters account against Arsenal in the FA Cup fourth round.
The 28-year-old clinched an impressive 3-1 victory for Stoke by converting Matthew Etherington's cross four minutes from time, and Pulis feels Whitehead was long overdue a goal to reward his improving performances.
"He has been a midfield player who has scored goals on a regular basis," Pulis said. "Before the game we had a chat with him about getting in there and scoring goals.
"He had been unlucky - he could have had five or six goals next to his name. He could have had a hat-trick at Blackburn (in November), so the chances have been there. He has done well. It took him a while to settle into what we want and what we didn't want.
"He is more confident and more settled. His energy levels are absolutely fantastic and he has just dropped into the groove really now. He wants to get forward. He has played on the right-hand side at times - even at the end of the game (last Sunday) where he gets his goal he is playing on the right-hand side."
