Stoke City boss Tony Pulis has told fans to vent their anger towards him and not the players.

Pulis acknowledges there will be unrest among the faithful after one win in nine.

He told The Sentinel: "When you are losing games you have to take the criticism. People are allowed to have their opinions and rightly so.

"If I was a younger manager I'd be wondering what was going on, but I know things can change quickly.

"You accept criticism from your own supporters because they are the ones who pay and they will be here long after I've gone.

"But if they are going to criticise, I would rather they criticise me because you need the players to be playing with confidence and freedom."