Tony Pulis, the Stoke City manager, insists the club's Senegalese stars will be in the right frame of mind to take on Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday, despite being caught up in riots in their homeland.

Salif Diao, Abdoulaye Faye and Ibrahima Sonko were among the players who had to be smuggled out of the stadium in Dakar when Senegal fans went on the rampage, after seeing their country's 2010 World Cup and African Nations Cup qualification hopes crash with a 1-1 draw at home to Gambia last Saturday.

Angry supporters hurled stones and metal bars onto the pitch, burned tyres on the road outside the ground, and set fire to the football federation headquarters.

But Pulis said: "They are all fine. They've got broken hearts through not qualifying and they recognise what a massive disappointment it was to the people of Senegal.

"The three of them were flat and down in the dumps when they got back, but I'm sure they will put that behind them now and give their best for Stoke City."

Pulis' only concern was the fact Faye returned with a slight hamstring injury, while Diao was called up against his wishes after missing their last game at Portsmouth.

He added: "The chances of Abdoulaye being fit for Sunday are more with us than against us and I'm delighted Salif has returned in good health.

"He had a hamstring niggle and I didn't want him to do all the travelling, but he played for an hour against Gambia and that has probably done him the world of good.

"Salif was particularly disappointed not to qualify because he shot to prominence with his performances at the 2002 World Cup. But he's a strong character and a proud man and I have no doubt he will bounce back quickly."

The Stoke manager is playing down the importance of the game - and the pressure on Juande Ramo, his Tottenham counterpart.

He said: "I think it's crazy that he (Ramos) is under so much pressure after seven games. This is the toughest league in the world and he won the League Cup with them a few months ago.

"They got rid of a popular manager (Martin Jol) and picked him, so now they should back him. He's got a lot of experience and a lot of good players at his disposal. He just needs time to get the best out of them."