Stoke have no new injury worries ahead of the tie with the Bluebirds.
Striker Mamady Sidibe (Achilles) is their only absentee.
Manager Tony Pulis has pledged to send out a strong side but fringe players such as Tuncay Sanli, Glenn Whelan and Marc Wilson will be hopeful of a run-out.
Cardiff boss Dave Jones will again assess his injury-hit squad as late as possible.
The majority of City's concerns come in the attacking department with Jay Bothroyd (hamstring), Michael Chopra (ankle), Craig Bellamy (ongoing knee problem) and Jon Parkin (knee) all to be checked.
Bothroyd is unlikely to make it at the Britannia Stadium but Jones is more hopeful over the availability of Chopra, while game-to-game decisions have to be made as to whether Bellamy's long-standing knee injury can cope with the demands of playing more than once a week.
New signing Parkin is still to make his debut having arrived from Preston with a slight strain but he will be desperate to be involved against another of his former employers. He played for the Potters under Tony Pulis between 2007 and 2008.
Jason Koumas will also be monitored, along with a couple of other unnamed players, but Jones said: "If there's any doubt then we'll leave them because we want to be right as we go into another big block of games pretty soon."
Defender Chris Riggott is the only definite absentee with his hamstring injury.
Potters (from): Begovic, Collins, Delap, Etherington, Higginbotham, Huth, Nash, Pennant, Pugh, Shawcross, Shotton, Soares, Tonge, Walters, Whelan, Whitehead, Wilkinson, Diao, Faye, Fuller, Gudjohnsen, Jones, Sorensen, Tuncay, Wilson.
