TWO players set to face Saints twice in the next week and a half are today in the Premier League spotlight.

Stoke pair Victor Moses and Ryan Shawcross were at the centre of two penalty decisions during their 2-1 win over Swansea at the Britannia Stadium yesterday.

Swans boss Garry Monk accused Moses of cheating by making a “blatant dive”, adding that the winger should be ashamed of himself and punished for his actions.

Stoke boss Mark Hughes – like Monk, a former Saints player – rubbished Monk’s claims but spoke of his concern that Shawcross was being unfairly targeted by referees at corners.

Shawcross was adjudged to have fouled Wilfried Bony for Swansea’s penalty.

Monk was left fuming at the Potters' equaliser , which came in the 43rd minute after Moses went to ground in the visitors' box under the attentions of Angel Rangel.

It appeared Moses had gone down somewhat easily but referee Michael Oliver awarded a penalty which Charlie Adam tucked away.

Monk - in no doubt it had been a "massive game-changing moment" - branded Oliver's decision "disgusting", suggesting even Stoke's bench could not believe the call that had been made.

Monk said: “It was a massive, game-changing moment, and for me, it is a disgusting decision to be honest.

“How he (Oliver) can't see it is a blatant dive is beyond me.

“For me, Moses has cheated the referee into making that decision, and he should be punished for that, for clear cheating.

“It is one of the most blatant dives you will ever see. You can go and watch a million games and you won't see more of a dive than that.

“He should be ashamed of himself for diving like that. But this is the world we live in. That is what some players want to do, so I have to live with that - to live with an extremely poor decision, once again.

“He is supposed to be a professional referee at the highest level - you wouldn't expect that from a professional.

“For me, everyone in the stadium was amazed he gave it.

“I looked straight at their bench and they were looking at me as if they couldn't believe it.

“He (Oliver) is the only guy in the stadium who thought that was a clear-cut penalty."

Monk - who said he "wouldn't be able to go home to my family and show my face to them" if he had done what Moses did, and stressed that any of his players that dived would be fined and dropped - also had strong words for referees' chief Mike Riley.

The Swansea manger believes his side have been victims of a number of incorrect decisions by officials, and said: "I have sent a DVD off with a letter, expressing my disappointment and I've had no contact from Mike Riley.

“I think it is about being pro-active and he is clearly not doing that - he is clearly not listening to anything I am saying.

“So I have to go above him, and hopefully that will send the right message and I can get the right answers.

“His (Riley's) job is to ring me - it's not mine to ring him. He is supposed to be the head of these guys and overseeing it all, and seeing what managers feel.

“But I've had no contact whatsoever, and for me, that is very poor."

Hughes hit back at Monk for his comments on Moses, saying: “I actually heard him say that my player was a cheat which is unacceptable in my view."

He added of his 35-year-old opposite number: “Sometimes you have to bite your lip and just be careful what you say, because you can get yourself into trouble.

“The longer you are in this game, the more experience you get and sometimes you have to curb what you really feel. Maybe it is an occasion he needs to learn from."

Hughes insisted Moses, who is on loan at Stoke from Chelsea, did not dive and also defended Potters captain Ryan Shawcross.

The away side took the lead in the 34th minute when Shawcross and Bony tussled at a corner, the latter went down and Oliver awarded a penalty which the Swansea striker converted himself.

Hughes felt Bony hit the turf "quite easily", and said: "I'm a little bit concerned because I think people are trying to highlight Ryan over most Premier League defenders in terms of holding people in the box, which is pure nonsense.

“If you are giving penalties for that, you have to at both ends for both teams.

“I just think maybe the referee had seen a little bit of the media coverage and that every time we have a corner against, the cameras go straight to Ryan.

“The referee might have been doing his pre-match work and that might have been highlighted to him, so maybe that was why he felt the need to give that decision.

“But from my view, it was a soft penalty."

Stoke, who visit Saints in the Premier League next Saturday before hosting them in the League Cup last 16 the following Wednesday – secured the three points through a 76th-minute header from substitute Jonathan Walters.