Tony Pulis: 'Villa played well'

Tony Pulis has paid tribute to the effort of Aston Villa as they held his Stoke side to a goalless draw at the Britannia tonight.

The manager admitted that he had anticipated a "very, very tough game" ahead of the derby.

"I think that's Villa's sixth draw away from home this year, they've almost done better away than they have at home," he told Sky Sports News.

"We didn't get out of the blocks as quickly as we'd like to. But then you've got to give Villa some credit too - sometimes, you have to hold your hand up and say the other team did well. They played some good football and they've got some good players in their team."

Next up for Stoke is a home clash with struggling Wigan on New Year's Eve.