After the Stoke vs. Liverpool showdown, Mark Hughes defended his City players against allegations that they had lost concentration in the final 10 minutes of the game. According to the gaffer, Liverpool looked content to take a point from the Britannia Stadium, but that flies in the face of what was happening on the pitch. Liverpool looked like the team pressing for a goal during the closing portion of the match. Coutinho's match-winner came on the 86-minute mark, crushing Stoke hopes of a opening day win. A 0-0 draw would have been a fair reflection of the contest, but Stoke only had one shot on target throughout the entire match. At home, that's not good enough, and it seems that Hughes simply got his tactics wrong as the game sneaked towards the finish. After a decent season last year, Stoke fans would have been hoping to see their side kick off with a better performance. Even worse for Hughes, Liverpool still had their 6-1 thrashing from Stoke in the closing fixture of last season fresh in their minds. There really should have been more of an attempt to exploit Liverpool's defensive frailties from Hughes and Stoke.