Stoke City beat Charlton 4-0 at the bet365 Stadium on Saturday in the Championship. The result came in Regular Season round 5, played on 5 September 2026. Justin Devenny opened the scoring from the penalty spot in the fifteenth minute before adding a second just before half-time.
The visitors started bright enough to earn a corner within the opening quarter, but the pressure shifted quickly. Ethan Galbraith made it two in the twenty-second minute, and George Hirst followed within three minutes. By then Charlton had already lost their rhythm, and the substitutions began to arrive in force. Tyreece Campbell came on for the hosts in the twenty-sixth, while Sam Gallagher replaced a struggling midfielder in the thirty-fourth.
And here's the thing about matches like this — they are rarely won by sustained pressure. They are decided in windows. The penalty in the fifteenth minute changed the complexion immediately. Charlton's goalkeeper had made four saves, but the spot-kick removed any doubt. Devenny's second goal in the fortieth minute closed the door, and the yellow cards piled up as frustration set in. Miles Leaburn and Ethan Galbraith both received bookings before the break, with Dan McNamara joining them shortly after the restart.
Stoke controlled 63 per cent of possession and registered eight shots on target against Charlton's three. They created two big chances compared to none for the visitors, and their expected goals figure of 2.14 told the story better than the scoreline. Charlton managed only 0.61 expected goals from seven attempts, with just three finding the target. The red card for one of their players later in the game would have compounded the damage, though the exact minute was not recorded in the available data.
The result leaves Stoke City in thirteenth place with six points from five games, while Charlton move up to sixth with ten points. The gap between them is now four points, and the visitors have one more victory to their name. For Stoke, it was a chance to build momentum after a mixed run — they had beaten Norwich 1-0 but lost to Wolves 4-1 in recent outings. Charlton arrived with three wins and a draw, but the performance suggested their form might not hold.
