Only one thing surprised me about Stoke City’s big call on Steven Schumacher.
Stoke City legend Mike Pejic reflects on a busy week at the bet365 Stadium.
I almost dropped my manuka honey at breakfast time on Monday when the news broke that Steven Schumacher had left Stoke City. It wasn’t the news we were expecting to wake up to and the start of what has turned out to be a busy week.
But it didn’t take long, however, for the surprise to subside. It was the timing, more than the decision, which had caught me off guard. I thought about what I’d written on these pages after the West Brom game four weeks ago and that explains it all.
Players were evidently confused that day and so was everyone else in the stadium. Out of nowhere, and having gone through pre-season with a 4-3-3 system – and that had got him good results to end last year, Schumacher switched to wing-backs, with three centre-halves marking one striker. We were exposed out wide and there were so many in-game changes, including moving Josh Laurent to centre-back, and Ben Gibson was the only outfield player who finished in the same position as he’d started.
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From my experience over a career in football, that afternoon told me a million things. Sometimes you get a vibe, a feeling, that there are games at play other than the one on the pitch, especially when it was only a few days until the transfer deadline. It might have highlighted weaknesses in the squad at a crucial time in the summer window but it rarely strengthens your position. Maybe I’m just being paranoid but either way it didn’t bode well.
