By Dave Knapper | Email to a friend | Digg |
Published: Friday 05 Sep 2008
Recent Articles | Recent Blog Posts

Privileged Kitson hails City fans

STOKE City’s record signing Dave Kitson says he is privileged to be playing for the club and has been inspired by the supporters’ passion for top-flight football.
The 28-year-old has helped City to three points from their first three outings, including their dramatic 3-2 win over Aston Villa in their only home game.
Stoke return to the Britannia Stadium next Sunday for the televised visit of Everton, and Kitson says he can’t wait to play in front of another full house.
He believes home advantage can help Stoke emulate his former club Reading by staying up in their first season out of the Championship.
He said: “When we went up with Reading nobody knew what to expect so we just cracked on and had a great time.
“It is the same here and it is amazing to see the similarities between the two clubs. There is the freshness to that first year in the Premier League and an excitement and buzz around town.
“It is amazing and I like being part of those moments in a club’s history.
“To me they are just as important, relatively, as Manchester United going for the league every year.
“It is a privilege to be part of something like this.”
Kitson has yet to open his account for Stoke, although he has been praised by manager Tony Pulis for his efforts so far.
The £5.5m striker says City’s start of three points from their opening three games shows they won’t be the no-hopers many pundits predicted. He added: “I have been pleased we’ve scored in every game, but we have also conceded too many so, as a team, we need to shore that up a little bit.
“But it is a completely new experience to most of the squad and it does take half-a-dozen games to get used to.
“The problem with that is, after half-a-dozen games, if you aren’t doing well it is a huge dent in the confidence.
“But we have won a game, it was against a big team, and it was in front of our own fans.
“They know it is going to be difficult going on the road but, if they make the Britannia Stadium a fortress for us and intimidating for other teams, then we will keep picking up points there.
“You have to beat the teams around you, but we have lost to Bolton and Middlesbrough, albeit away from home.
“But I have seen enough there to think if we just smooth things over a little bit, and tinker here and there, we will be all right.”