Stoke City boss Tony Pulis refused to seek excuses for their 5-0 defeat to Bolton Wanderers.

Stoke had been in Europa League action away at Maccabi Tel Aviv only on Thursday but manager Pulis had no excuses.

Pulis said: "We were very poor, I didn't think we competed.

"Whether the first goal was a back pass or not, it makes absolutely no difference. We had 90-odd minutes to put it right but we just didn't compete.

"Bolton were better than us all over the pitch.

"I have managed the club for eight-and-a-half years, over 200 games, and that has got to be one of the worst performances in respect of being competitive and doing the basics properly.

"But take nothing away from Bolton. We had our day at Wembley and they have had their day today."

On his team's schedule, he added: "Playing Monday, Thursday and Sunday is always going to be a tough call when you are travelling those distances but there are no excuses whatsoever."