Stoke City assistant manager Mark Bowen has backed the squad to prove their quality after failing to win any of their opening six Premier League games.

The Potters have struggled to replicate the form which secured their highest points tally last season, but Bowen is confident that Mark Hughes will once again manage to lead his side to a spot in the top half of the table.

"The last 12 years we have been in the Premier League don't ask me why, but we've had slow starts in the past and we get results in the end and finish in the top 10. Hopefully, it's the same this year," he told reporters.

"In fact, when we were at Fulham, if I remember right, we had another slow start and were round about the bottom four at Christmas time and finished eighth.

"It will come, but the situation we are in you can't ignore. It helps that most of the players, and certainly the management staff, have been there before and that makes you feel a lot better."

Stoke enjoyed a distraction from the league with a 1-0 victory over Fulham in the League Cup third round on Tuesday night.