‘Nobody messed with him’ – Robert Huth names ex-teammate who would win Stoke City Royal Rumble

Robert Huth was a huge figure during his playing days, but even he admits there is one teammate no one would mess with.

The German defender went on to play his entire professional career in English football Chelsea signed him from Union Berlin in 2001.

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He made his debut for the Blues at the age of 17 and later won two Premier League titles Jose Mourinho.

Spells at Middlesbrough and Stoke City followed before Huth achieved perhaps his greatest achievement in helping Leicester City winning the Premier League title in 2016.

It’s fair to say that Huth knows his way around the Premier League and has had the opportunity to test himself against the biggest and worst that English football had to offer during his successful career.

Fortunately, Huth was teammates with the only player no one messed with during his six-year spell at Stoke.

The Potters, under the watchful eye of Tony Pulis, were known for their non-nonsense, tough approach.

It would be unfair to say that this is all they had to offer. At times they were able to produce football efficient enough to disrupt the Premier League big boys.

Any team heading to Stoke in early 2010 would know they were dealing with big players like captain Ryan Shawcross, Jon Walters and Rory Delap.

However, there was one star who dominated when it came to sheer raw power, which quickly earned him the respect of his teammates.

Huth joined talkSPORT drive this week and was asked which of his former teammates would win a Stoke City Royal Rumble, and the answer was emphatic.

“Ricardo Fuller,” Huth revealed.

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“He was strong when he wasn’t even angry. Can you imagine if he was angry?

“No one messed with Ric,” he added. “He had the respect of the boys: if it starts anyway, drop a shoulder and leave.

Darren Bentwho faced Fuller during his playing days, doubled down on Huth’s claim, saying: “Oh my god, he was so strong, I swear to you. I’m a striker, he’s a striker, but the way he came back was so strong.”

Fuller spent six years at Stoke, scoring 50 goals in 208 games before spells with Charlton, Millwall and Blackpool.

The Jamaican international retired in 2020 after a spell with Northern Premier League team Nantwich Town.

However, his presence is still strongly felt at Stoke, following the club’s decision to rename the sports bar at bet365 Stadium Ricardo’s in the striker’s honour.

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As for the toughest striker Huth has faced in his career, that award goes to the legendary Chelsea striker Didier Drogba.

“I think it’s pretty simple,” Huth said. “Every match I played against him, he was there. He was always great.

“There wasn’t a game that I thought was five percent off. Even games where they had already won the league and he elbows you in the face. Come on, give me a break!”