Pulis reveals pride in Stoke

And nor has his determination to keep pushing the club forward.

The Staffordshire outfit, hovering just above the second tier relegation zone when Pulis was named boss on November 1 2002, are now in their fifth successive Premier League season, with appearances in the 2011 FA Cup final and last term's Europa League under their belts.

During his decade in charge - which is punctuated by a spell at Plymouth after he was dismissed by the Potters' Icelandic owners at the end of 2004-05, only to return a year later following Peter Coates' takeover - the Welshman has overseen a considerable transformation at the club.

His feelings towards Stoke remain unchanged, though, and for all he has achieved to date, Pulis is certainly not about to take his position for granted or ease up in his efforts to continue driving them onwards and upwards.

Speaking this afternoon at a press conference to preview Saturday's away league clash with Norwich, at which he was presented with a cake in recognition of his landmark, Pulis said: "It has been tough, but obviously I'm very proud of what we have done and achieved.

"I can remember sitting in the Waddington Suite (at the Britannia Stadium) on my first night with the Icelandic directors saying I was very proud to manage Stoke City, and I still am very proud to manage this football club.

"It has been a fantastic time here. It has had ups and downs and it is difficult - football clubs are not easy to manage.

"But I've enjoyed it, and I hope people will look back and feel I've played my part in what we've done over the last 10 years.

"It has been very, very good, but the biggest thing in life and in sport is that you can't rest on your laurels.

"You have got to keep driving forward and pushing forward. I know you are always three or four games away from taking a lot of stick, so you have to be on the front foot as much as you can.

"If you sit an d take slaps on the back and people saying well done, then you take your foot off the pedal.

"The Premier League is such a tough, tough league and it can all fall away so quickly."

Potters chairman Coates has hailed Pulis - who has guided Stoke to 12th, 11th, 13th and then last season 14th-placed finishes in the Premier League - as the club's greatest manager.

Coates told Stoke's official website: "He has done a remarkable job to establish the club in what is widely recognised as the most competitive league in the world, where the top teams and top players are world class.

"That is why I believe that he qualifies as our best-ever manager.

"Tony did well for us the first time around because he steadied the ship when we were facing relegation and he achieved it on a very modest budget.

"There was a time when I thought we would never get into the Premier League, but all that started to change when Tony came back (in 2006).

"He ha d a clear vision of what he wanted to achieve at the club and we have made incredible progress in a relatively short space of time."