There's a weariness around Stoke City.

The club have money. They have passionate fans and great facilities but they have failed to muster anything close to a credible promotion challenge since relegation from the Premier League in 2018.

Managers and coaches have come and gone, each arriving with fanfare and the promise of a new dawn.

Narcis Pelach is the latest to be replaced - a bright, respected young coach quickly dulled by the club's malaise and his own difficulty in turning theories into results.

This is a big appointment for inexperienced sporting director Jon Walters.

He has overseen one big failure and can ill afford another with Stoke at the wrong end of the table, despite the goodwill his playing career at the club has earned him.

So, Mark Robins gets the chance to turn things around.

He's experienced, recently successful and, if he succeeds, he'll quickly become a legend in the Potteries.

If he can't? He'll just become the latest cab off the rank for a fanbase that's been here too many times before.