Pulis: Players must stay alert

Stoke boss Tony Pulis has urged his players to stay alert to the challenge as their lengthy season draws towards its conclusion.

The Potters have just three games remaining of a memorable campaign which has already included 53 fixtures and a run to the last 32 of the Europa League. Everton are the season's penultimate visitors to the Britannia Stadium in the Barclays Premier League on Tuesday ahead of a trip to QPR and a home clash with Bolton. And after a creditable draw with Arsenal on Saturday, Pulis is pleased that his players are still fighting as they push for a top-half finish. Pulis said: "It's been a long season but the players are still going. We've got a very difficult game here on Tuesday night. Everton, along with Arsenal, are one of the real form teams at the moment. "We will have to be really on it to get anything out of it and then we finish with QPR and Bolton, both fighting for their lives. All the games left are against teams playing for something. "In one respect it makes that difficult for us but in another respect it is a challenge we have to pick up. It is going to be a really tough finish for us."