Stoke City have announced that manager Mark Robins has signed a new three-and-a-half-year deal.
The 55-year-old has made an impressive start since his January opponent.
The gaffer 🫡
Mark Robins signs new, extended Stoke City contract.
— Stoke City FC (@stokecity) November 21, 2025
First team coaches Paul Nevin, James Rowberry, Ryan Shawcross and Darren Behcet have also agreed new deals.
A Revolutionary Season: Can Stoke Return To The Top Flight?
The appointment of Mark Robins as Stoke City manager caught many by surprise. Fresh from a shock and widely criticised sacking by Coventry City despite guiding them to the Championship play-off final just months earlier, Robins wasted no time reminding everyone of his level of coaching.
At Coventry, he achieved something close to revolutionary: taking over a club in League Two in 2017, he led them to promotion to League One at the first attempt, then up to the Championship via the play-offs during COVID. By 2023, he had them within a penalty shoot-out of the Premier League, only denied by a heartbreaking defeat to Luton Town in the play-off final at Wembley.
His Coventry side consistently over-performed, playing fast and attacking football while developing stars like Viktor Gyökeres and Callum O’Hare.
Since arriving at the Bet365 Stadium, Robins has enjoyed a strong start. Last season he steadied a seemingly sinking ship, guiding Stoke to an 18th-place finish, just 2 points clear of the drop.
This year, the transformation is stunning: after 15 games, Stoke City sit 3rd with 27 points. Loanee Divin Mubama from Manchester City has 5 goals, Lewis Baker and Million Manhoef have 4 each, and defensively Stoke are the division’s meanest, conceding just 0.70 goals per match. Veteran Aaron Cresswell, signed from West Ham, has brought leadership and quality to the backline.
Under Robins, Stoke finally looks like a team capable of ending their top-flight exile.
Chairman of Stoke City John Coates, said:
“It has been clear during his short time with the Club to date that Mark is the right fit as Manager of Stoke City.
“The progress we have made on the field has been extremely encouraging; our players are responding excellently to our coaching team and the way our brilliant supporters have galvanised even further behind the Club during the past year has been a pleasure to see.
“Demonstrating our commitment to Mark, Paul, James, Ryan and Darren, and gaining their loyalty in return, is an important statement of our intent to continue our build towards a successful future.”
The coaching quartet 🤝
Potters’ staff join Mark Robins in penning new contracts in ST4.
— Stoke City FC (@stokecity) November 21, 2025
Moving Forward This Season
The question now is simple: Can Stoke City hold their nerve and return to the Premier League for the first time since relegation in 2017/18?
Everything suggests they have a genuine shot. The gap to the automatic spots remains small, and Robins, the man who dragged Coventry from League Two to a few kicks away from the Premier League, has instilled real belief in a club that has had a difficult spell since their drop Premier League.
Tough upcoming games against Leicester City, Hull City and Ipswich Town before Christmas will test Stoke City’s resolve and if they can beat the division’s big guns.
With the best defensive record in the league, a solid platform built by Robins and experienced players like Aaron Cresswell, and attacking threats like Manhoef and Baker in form, a top-two finish feels achievable.
After years of mediocrity, Stoke City fans daring to dream again. Eight years is a long time outside the elite, but Mark Robins has already proved he knows the path from the depths to the brink to genuine title challengers.
