Stoke City team news vs Charlton as new boy heads into reunion

Mark Robins is set to choose from an unchanged Stoke City squad as his side prepare for a midweek trip to Charlton Athletic. The Potters are chasing their first win at The Valley since January 1997, when a Mike Sheron brace – assisted by Mark Stein and Graham Kavanagh – sealed victory, and they will be hoping to revive their Championship top-six ambitions in Wednesday night’s rearranged fixture (7.45pm).
Jesurun Rak-Sakyi, who made his Stoke debut in Saturday’s goalless draw away at West Brom, is set to face Charlton for the first time. The 23-year-old enjoyed a standout spell at The Valley, where he was named Player of the Year in 2023 after scoring 15 goals and providing eight assists during a League One loan from Crystal Palace.
At the back, Maksym Talovierov and Eric Bocat are pushing for places, while Steven Nzonzi and Tomas Rigo are midfield options. Lamine Cissé and Million Manhoef are also hoping to earn starts in attack. Aside from Bocat, all were introduced from the bench at The Hawthorns, with Bocat likely to deputise for Aaron Cresswell at left-back.
Ato Ampah remains sidelined with a toe problem, while Junior Tchamadeu and Gavin Bazunu are not expected back until early March as they recover from knee and thigh injuries respectively. Lewis Baker is managing ongoing discomfort following surgery earlier in the year, and Divin Mubama continues his ankle rehabilitation between Stoke and parent club Manchester City.
Viktor Johansson and Robert Bozenik have both resumed running after shoulder operations in January, and Sam Gallagher is steadily progressing from a hamstring issue. Robins, however, has played down setting clear return dates, explaining on Friday: “It might sound flippant to say they’re a week closer, but they’re still working through things and it’s very hard to put a timescale on it.”