Stoke City: Jun-Ho Bae reveal shows where he really impressed v Portsmouth | OneFootball

FLW take a deeper look into Jun-Ho Bae's performance for Stoke City in their 6-1 mauling of Portsmouth.

Stoke City's Jun-Ho Bae may not have scored four goals against Portsmouth on Wednesday night, but he was one of the standout players on display at the bet365 Stadium.

The Potters earned a 6-1 victory over Pompey, with this being Narcis Pelach's first win since taking charge of the club. It took the Spaniard's side three attempts to get three points on the board, but they ended up doing so in emphatic fashion.

After defeats to Hull City and Middlesbrough, Stoke responded by thumping their visitors, with Andrew Moran and Sam Gallagher picking up their first goals in red-and-white since their summer moves from Blackburn Rovers. However, it was truly the Tom Cannon show, as the Leicester City loanee struck four times.

It had been a difficult start for Stoke under Pelach prior to Wednesday’s hammering of Portsmouth, with two defeats from two. Although it is still only early days for him so far, and there may still be some performances more akin to their game against Middlesbrough before expecting to see more thrilling wins like this on a regular basis.

Either way, this should be a really encouraging performance for supporters, and a sign of what the team’s potential can be once everything starts to click at the top end of the pitch. Prior to the game, they had notched just four league goals, and more than doubled that figure after their thumping of the newly-promoted side.

Stoke City's potential in attack

Stoke, in many ways, are blessed with a talented young squad, especially in attack. The likes of Cannon, Lewis Koumas, and Million Manhoef are all exciting players to be optimistic about, but one other player particularly stands out from the crowd at the bet365 Stadium.

After building a reputation for signing players that fit into a more physical style of play in recent years, the Potters have gone under a renaissance of sorts during the last couple of summer windows, with Bae Jun-Ho amongst them.

He was signed from South Korean side Daejeon Hana Citizen for a reported fee of £2 million last summer. He scored twice, while also picking up six assists in all competitions, during his first season with the Championship side.

The South Korean international showed flashes of his brilliance during 2023/24, but there is evidently so much more to come from the 21-year-old. His development looks to have gone to another level this season already, having bagged three assists from Stoke's 10-goal league haul.

Given his potential, it was no great surprise that he was targeted in the summer by Premier League side Fulham, but his then manager, Steven Schumacher, refused to let go of him.

He categorically told all interested punters that the attacking midfielder was not for sale, which seems to be the right decision for both Bae and Stoke so far, who are reaping the rewards. His two assists on Wednesday were excellent, but barely scratch the surface in terms of his consistent brilliance on the night as a thorn in Portsmouth's side.

He can operate as an attacking midfielder or winger, with Bae utilised from the left flank yesterday evening to great effect. Although he is an extremely exciting player to watch, it can be said that he has lacked the capacity to score and create goals on a consistent basis so far in his fledgling career.

If he is to go on and become the player that many anticipate him to become, Jun-Ho must add to both columns regularly, and become the game-changer that he has the potential to be. He has created 12 chances so far this season, which places him in the top 25 players in the Championship, as per FotMob.

Half of that figure came on Wednesday evening, with six chances created, according to FotMob. That figure was double that of the next highest player on the field, in what was a standout display only overshadowed by Cannon's incredible feat.

This season is the 21-year-old's opportunity to take the league by the scruff of its neck and become the match-winner and attacking differential for Stoke after having had a year already to settle in.

The Potters are at the very least aiming to get back to the upper end of the Championship after a disappointing few years, and he could be central to that, providing the much-needed X-factor to their attack.