Stoke City Boss Jones Hails ‘Wonderful’ Etebo

Stoke City manager Nathan Jones believes the ‘wonderful’ Oghenekaro Etebo has even more to offer after the Nigerian scored his first goal for the club in Saturday’s 2-0 home win against Nothingham Forest, Completesports.com reports.

Etebo, 23, tuned in another outstanding midfield display on Saturday as the Potters dented Nottingham Forest’s promotion hopes with a 2-0 win at the bet365 Stadium.

The former Warri Wolves midfielder opened the scoring for the Potters with a long-range strike after 15 minutes but his afternoon ended prematurely when he forced out of the action midway through the second half by a groin injury.

His performances have had Jones purring but the Potters boss believes there’s more to come from the 23-year-old.

“Peter has been absolutely outstanding since I came in – he’s been wonderful,” Jones told Stoke City’s official website.

“His work-rate, his character, his technical ability and what he does is high level. When you first see him you don’t necessarily see what he’s got but then you see him in games and he’s a real game player. It’s clear that he’s not a training ground international, he’s a proper, proper player.

“I’ve been delighted with him and there’s far more to come because I think he can be even better when he gets into the final third, I think he can be even better with his passing and he’ll get fitter. He’s an exciting player for us.”

Etebo who linked up with Stoke City from Portuguese club CD Feirense last summer has now made 25 appearances for the club in the Championship.

Jones’ men last tasted victory mid-January, when they defeated highflyers Leeds United 2-1.

They came closer to halting their unimpressive run in their last two games but were forced to settle for stalemates against Ipswich Town and Aston Villa respectively.

Stoke City are 16th in the log after picking 44 points from 35 games.

Next up for the Potters is a trip to Loftus Road to face Queens Park Rangers on Saturday.

By Adeboye Amosu