Stoke City boss Nathan Jones has dropped a hint that Joe Allen could be about to regain his place in the Potters' midfield for their clash with Birmingham City on the weekend.

Allen was benched for Stoke's last league clash against Leeds United which they lost 3-0, and he was not included in the match day squad when the two sides met again in the Carabao Cup on Tuesday night.

The Welshman was one of the victims of Stoke's poor start to the league season, which has seen them pick up just one point from their first five Championship matches.

This means Jones' side are in desperate need of a win when they travel to St Andrew's on Saturday afternoon, and it looks like Allen could play a part in the match.

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Jones told the Stoke City website that the 29-year-old did not make the starting line-up for the previous two matches because he was rested, and he now hopes this will enable a reinvigorated Allen to return to the side.

When asked about the decision to drop Allen, Jones said: “It is all done with reasoning behind it, and like I say, hopefully when Joe does come back into the side we will really see him playing to the level that everybody knows he is capable of.”

Plenty of Stoke supporters responded to Jones' comments regarding Allen, with many criticising the Stoke boss for considering his re-inclusion in the side for Saturday's match.

Here are some of their responses...