Steven Schumacher has some tasks underlined on his to-do list ahead of his first pre-season as Stoke City head coach
During the offseason, Stoke City hasn’t been letting the dust settle. In anticipation of Jon Walters’ first year as sporting director, Lee Darnbrough’s first transfer window as head of recruiting, and Steven Schumacher’s first preseason as head coach, Clayton Wood has been a swarm of activity.
Two new players have joined the first team. It was Viktor Johansson who came through the door first. The 25-year-old goalie is leaving Rotherham United after Stoke activated their release clause from relegation. Ben Gibson came next. Just now, the 31-year-old center back assisted Norwich in making it to the Championship play-offs.
Even though Stoke won their last three games of the season despite losing five players from the starting lineup, there appear to be two significant voids filled before the transfer window has even officially opened.
But what’s more impressive than Schumacher’s office in-tray?What tasks is Walters putting off? What has to be completed by Darnbrough before the important Championship game takes place the second weekend in August? Here are Stoke City’s top priorities as they map out their operations.
Maintaining control of the squad’s size
When asked about the difficulty Steven Schumacher faced in assembling the strongest starting lineup from the group he took over in December, Jon Walters responded. After all, Stoke fielded 35 players in the league during the 2023–2024 season.
“First and foremost, the issue is having 30 players,” he stated. “The players who aren’t on the field present the biggest challenge for any coach.” You have to avoid the people who aren’t having fun since everyone who is playing is happy. When you have a lot of them, that might be challenging and obstructs the academy pathway.
“I believe that last year—and I promise never to point the finger—players usually need time to get comfortable. After they’ve had a year to settle in, you’ll see some of the greatest players next season. It’s also the atmosphere you cultivate around those players—your Wouter Burger or Junho. Imagine Junho after a year of settling in; he was a non-native English speaker when he first arrived and had a translator. In my opinion, he is a wonderful talent who will compete at the highest level, hopefully with Stoke.
“Then you add the expertise and know-how to exit the league, which is why Lee entered the picture and assisted with that aspect, having assembled teams that have participated in and won promotions. A combination is required. Last year, there were far too many players. This summer, perhaps, there won’t be as many changes.
“It involves trimming the team to create a more manageable group and a genuine career path for emerging players.” Even if they end up going on loan at the start of the season and subsequently return, their involvement is still required.
But in the end, you have to prevail. Even with all of these measures, winning will always remain the primary goal. How can we triumph? We need to establish the ideal atmosphere, bring in the top players, and develop the remaining guys. I may provide you with a five- or ten-year plan, but you must succeed. That is something you must comprehend.
and striking the ideal equilibrium with a smaller team
Throughout the winter, Stoke’s team imbalanced as much as its bloatedness was a concern at times. They had to ask Josh Laurent to come in at center half and Jordan Thompson to cover at left back due to overloading in central midfield.
It is evident that Steven Schumacher has a vision for the players he hopes to use during this window and in the future.
“Now that I think about it. We had a roster that I inherited, and from Game Week 23 to Game Week 46, we were 14th in the league. I hadn’t had the time or chance to work with them to get to the level we wanted to get to and sign individuals who will be so vital,” he said.
“We did better than some teams, which goes unnoticed because we only finished 17th in the league,” he continued. “But, in my opinion, we outperformed them with a squad that doesn’t exactly have the right mix of what we need.” We have a good possibility of outperforming them the following season if we can go acquire some of those guys who, in my opinion, improve us.
A front guy who can shoulder the weight of the objective
There will be significant arrivals. For example, Viktor Johansson is Stoke’s first number one in far too long. However, the quest for a primary striker with consistent scoring ability has been longer than that.
To offer the team a chance for a fresh start in this role, Tyrese Campbell was discharged. Nathan Lowe and Emre Tezgel intend to lay down their claims for the future as well. It is without a doubt the main transfer target that Stoke is looking for and desperately needs.
“We’ve highlighted the areas of the pitch and things that we did really well since we came in game week 23 and there’s loads of positives and loads of things that we were doing successfully, but there’s a glaring and obvious weakness of what we’ve got,” stated Schumacher in his end-of-term analysis.
“Ahead of goal, we now need to be more clinical. We need to score more goals from certain places inside the 18-yard box and create more chances from other areas as well. Consequently, it is now our responsibility to decide, “Okay, that’s what it’s saying, this is what the data and evidence are showing us. Can we go ahead and get the recruitment right to give us a chance that when we’re playing so well we make the most of the opportunities?”
“We wish to avoid déjà vu. I keep stating that we don’t want to find ourselves in this situation once more. Our team is doing a great deal of excellent, really great stuff. In terms of both clean sheets and set play goals, we were in the top six. There are many aspects of the team that you can work with, but there are also clear areas in which we can do better.
“So, we have a chance to do better next year if we can get that right, go get the right personnel (and you get a little luck too, by the way), and you get your signings right.”
In response, Mike Pejic says, “It is the easy part to spot that.” Finding them and bringing them in is the difficult part, especially if Financial Fair Play regulations are limiting your spending. Here’s where your network of scouts comes in handy. The players are out there, and it is their responsibility to identify those who, with perhaps a little refinement, could fit perfectly into the coach’s ideas.
“At the moment, the forwards who are scoring 20 goals a year in the Championship will be beyond our means, but scoring goals isn’t the only thing you consider when you’re watching games and making notes about possible targets.” You examine team dynamics and qualities and receive references for work pace and character.
“In the middle of the 1990s, while I was working with Lou Macari at Stoke, we pulled a surprise by trading Keith Scott to Norwich for Mike Sheron. Although Sheron wasn’t physically fit when he came, we knew we could improve that, and he was willing to train as well. We ultimately succeeded in getting him more fit than before.
His one-touch finishing was superb, his teamwork was exceptional, and he moved the area with electrifying speed and ingenuity. Whenever and whenever you win control on the field, you want the striker to be a first pass option by constantly running in behind and off the ball. How does that affect his teammates and the opposition?
“He made it happen; it didn’t just happen for him. He possessed the will, ability, and inventiveness to make it happen. If he was being watched carefully, which he was becoming more and more as he scored higher and higher, he could find space and make space for himself and others.
Therefore, if you want to go up the league table, you nearly always need that kind of talent. You must have that awareness of football, that cunning and dependability, and that space-exploiting desire.
Try not to take on too much at once.
Although they can’t expect to address every problem immediately, Stoke will want to make significant progress this summer. Though it would be absurd to try to replace everyone they believe doesn’t have Premier League caliber, they may believe that Bae Junho has top half potential. Even if that turns out to be their ceiling, there will be players who will assist them advance. That is the crucial first step.
Beginning the preseason on July 1st, according to Schumacher, “will give us all an opportunity to build what we think is going to give us a chance to have success.” Correct execution on the field is crucial, as is correct execution off the field, and the message conveyed to the supporters will also be crucial.
“There must be an improvement, no doubt about it, but it must be a reasonable one that allows us to maintain our optimism and avoid being overly optimistic. I also want to emphasize the need of managing our expectations without becoming pessimistic. I have to be reasonable about where we can end up. That will be the goal.
Walters added, “We won’t jump from point A to point B achieve success right soon. There will inevitably be failures, but as long as the club has the right people in the proper positions, we will succeed.
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