Stoke City's players are hurting and their management cannot explain why bad starts continue to occur on their watch, admits assistant boss Mark Bowen.
The Potters have lost their last four Premier League games and sit bottom, desperate for a win against West Brom on Saturday.
It is a similar situation to last season when a League Cup clash kick-started their campaign and assistant Bowen hopes that is replicated this time when they face Hull City on Wednesday.
Bowen struggled, however, to explain just why Stoke are such slow starters a day after chairman Peter Coates gave manager Mark Hughes a vote of confidence.