Mark Robins ‘fuming’ after Stoke suffer further blow with Divin Mubama injury

Mark Robins admitted he was struggling to keep his emotions in check after Stoke suffered another significant injury blow in their 0-0 draw against QPR.

The Potters saw a number of chances go begging with Tomas Rigo, Divin Mubama and Lamine Cisse all going close, while Maksym Talovierov instinctively turned an off-target Mubama shot wide as the hosts ended the first half strongly.

However, they were dealt a huge blow when Mubama was carried off the pitch after suffering a suspected broken leg during a late challenge from Jimmy Dunne just after half-time.

The Potters rallied after the lengthy stoppage with Ashley Phillips and Bae Jun-Ho wasting opportunities before Kealey Adamson fluffed a good chance to win it for the visitors in stoppage time.

“It was a terrible foul,” said Robins. “I don’t think (Jimmy) Dunne is that type of player and it was a tough one to take.

“Divin is a young player who is working his socks off to try and get back to the level he was at at the start of the season.

“That chance has now been taken away from him. It is a really tough blow for him and another injury we have suffered.

“We have got a stretched squad and you can’t keep sustaining injuries. I’m really disappointed for Divin. He has really suffered.

“I hope he is in a decent level of comfort now and can get himself back as soon as possible.

“At this moment in time I am fuming and trying to keep a lid on it. We want to attack the top six and we have to keep a calm head and take a breath.

“We have got to make sense of what we have got and what comes next. I will take stock of it with my staff.

“We will be working hard in terms of trying to recover and get ready for Wednesday, that is all that matters.”

QPR head coach Julien Stephan praised the maturity his side showed to get a draw.

“I think it was a good point for us,” he said. “The players showed resilience and a good mindset and we were organised defensively.

“The players showed great maturity. We knew that if we stayed very focused we would have chances. We had two good opportunities to win it.

“We didn’t use the ball well but, defensively, our mentality and how we protected our box and organisation was very good.

“All the credit to the players. It was a good performance. Two months ago it probably wouldn’t have been the same result at the end, but the players have shown improvement in terms of maturity.”