Cardiff manager Dave Jones should welcome back midfielder Stephen McPhail for the trip to Championship promotion rivals Stoke.McPhail missed the 3-1 victory over QPR on Tuesday with a hip problem but trained on Thursday, however he will face a battle to reclaim his central berth after teenage prospect Aaron Ramsey excelled in the role.

Goalkeeper Michael Oakes remains doubtful after taking a blow to the head against the Hoops so Peter Enckelman stands by.

Former England international Trevor Sinclair was an unused substitute in that game and will hope to make his long-awaited return to first-team action following injury.

Jones, who has been named Championship manager of the month for January, will again be without Riccardo Scimeca (groin), with the midfielder likely to be missing for another two weeks.

Steven Thompson will hope for a recall at the expense of Paul Parry or Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, while fellow forward Robbie Fowler (hip) definitely misses out.

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