Regular first-choice Thomas Sorensen missed last weekend's 1-0 defeat at Everton with an elbow problem and stand-in Asmir Begovic did little wrong at Goodison Park. Sorensen is fit to return so Pulis now has to choose between the two. "He (Sorensen) wasn't fit for Saturday but I thought Asmir came in and did brilliantly, looking very assured," Pulis said. "We have Thomas, who is an outstanding keeper who has done brilliantly for us, but we have a young pretender in Asmir. "It is a case now of deciding what I do on Saturday. Do I leave Asmir in and let him get on with it because that then puts enormous pressure on Thomas to get back in the team? "It is one of those situations as a manager you hope for." Pulis is hoping record signing Kenwyne Jones - one of a number of former Black Cats at Stoke - will be particularly motivated against the club he left in the summer. But he does not feel the Trinidad and Tobago international has any message to send to former boss Steve Bruce. "If you speak to Kenwyne I think he would say he doesn't have any point to prove," he added. "He had a good time there and enjoyed it but he has joined us now and is 110% behind us. "He has mixed in very well here. There are the likes of Dean Whitehead, Danny Higginbotham, Danny Collins (all ex-Sunderland); they all know him so it has been very easy for him to come into a club where there are people he knows. "We are just hoping we can play as well as we have played in the last couple of weeks and get the result that our performances have deserved." Pulis is wary of facing Sunderland after they were hammered 5-1 in the Tyne-Wear derby last week. "There will be a reaction from Steve and his players and there will be a lot of people at the Stadium of Light wanting to see a reaction," the Potters boss said. "Steve will be spitting blood after the derby defeat so we know what to expect. "They are a tough team to play against, they have a good home record and some good players. "He hasn't been playing Asamoah Gyan but has said he will play him and Darren Bent so we have an important task." A win at the Stadium of Light would lift Stoke out of 16th place and above Sunderland, currently 12th. But even after a run of three successive Premier League defeats, Pulis insists league places are not a concern at the moment. "It has been an interesting season because the three promoted teams (Newcastle, West Brom and Blackpool) have all done exceptionally well, taking a lot of points," he said. "That makes it a lot more competitive and open than it was last year. But it is a long season and after 38 games we'll see where everyone is."
