Stoke boss Hughes confused at Pulis handshake snub

Mark Hughes admitted to being a little miffed that counterpart Tony Pulis didn’t shake his hand as his Stoke City side fell to defeat at the Hawthorns.

James Morrison’s early goal was enough for West Brom to take all three points, but it was the relationship – or lack of – between the managers that drew the most attention.

The return of Saido Berahino to the Midlands was already expected to be an off-field talking point, but with Pulis facing his former employers, the West Brom boss and his opposite number seemed unable to see eye-to-eye.

And while seeming slightly peeved at the pre- and post-match snub, Hughes insists it’s not something he’ll be losing sleep over.

(Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images)

“I didn’t see him to shake his hand,” said Hughes. “I was on the touchline for quite some time at the end of the game.

“He didn’t shake my hand before the game either. I would have thought being a guest of the club he might have come over to welcome me to the game, but for some reason he didn’t want to.

“With most managers you have moments of disagreements during a game, but usually you have a beer after it and get on with it.

“You [the media] picked up on the non-handshake, but I’m not too upset by it.”