Friday 6 November 2015 17:33, UK
Mark Hughes hopes Stoke can take advantage of Jose Mourinho's absence when Chelsea visit the Britannia Stadium on Saturday.
Mourinho will serve a one-match stadium ban as part of his punishment for the half-time sending-off against West Ham last month.
The Blues boss has found himself in disciplinary hot water on more than one occasion already this season and on Friday opted to accept the punishment rather than submit an appeal.
That means he is not allowed to be at the Britannia for the match - an unusual situation that Stoke boss Hughes admits could work both ways.
He said: "Jose's had any number of run-ins this year, maybe he's just a little bit tired of trying to argue his case.
"I think Jose's got a little bit of a gripe with the powers that be and maybe they're coming down really hard on him at the moment.
"I'm not quite sure of the full details of why he is banned but obviously that may well impact negatively on the team, or it might be a positive. It's a tough one to call from our point of view whether it's a good thing or a bad thing.
"You would think without his influence at half-time or just prior to the game, that would take something away. But it's always good to see Jose in the dugout opposite and I know our crowd enjoy seeing opposition managers and that gets them going."
Mourinho suggested on Friday he might not even watch the game and insisted he would not do anything to try to flout the ban.
Hughes admitted he did not see how the punishment was 100 per cent enforceable, saying: "Who's to say he hasn't got a phone to his ear and is in touch with his coaching staff? Who's going to know?
"Unless an FA official is actually sat on Jose's knee, I don't think anyone would know."
