Interim boss Dean Holden leaves Stoke after masterminding win at Blackburn

Stoke interim manager Dean Holden has left the club after they recorded a battling 1-0 win at Blackburn – clearing the way for Alex Neil’s seemingly imminent appointment.

Holden, previously assistant to the sacked Michael O’Neill, took charge for the game at Ewood Park but a club statement after the game confirmed his departure.

In front of the watching Neil, Stoke showed both sides of their character, producing a dominant first-half display that saw them lead through Lewis Baker’s stunning 25-yard strike – the least they deserved after an energetic display that brought clear chances for Liam Delap, Aden Flint, and Jacob Brown.

After the restart, they showed heart and desire to protect the precarious lead against an improved Blackburn and held out to record only their fourth win on the road in 2022 and their secondvictory this season, giving Stoke a platform to build on under their next manager.

Holden believed the win showed how good Stoke can be.

He said: “There’s the basis of a really good team. They’ve not shown it enough, particularly this season. Just disappointed for him that he’s not been able to see it through because you can see today the quality we’ve got.

“First half, we knew that Blackburn have got a nice style of football, we knew we could catch them high up the pitch, which we did countless times. Probably should have come in at 2-0 really.

“We knew they’d throw everything at us second half. Jack (Bonham) had one save to make, in the first half, and it was a good save. Other than that, there were a load of blocks, but Jack didn’t have a lot to do.

“The new manager coming in is going to have a really good group of players and more importantly, a really good group of staff to push this club where it needs to