Stoke City legend Mike Pejic picks the bones out of the last week as the Potters prepare for a trip to Preston North End
Daniel Iversen has had a few noteworthy, impactful moments in the last few games as he attempts to establish himself in goal for Stoke City. This brings me to a long-standing annoyance and a major item on the summer to-do list, regardless of what transpires in between.
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Iversen, who spent seven months out of the spotlight at Leicester, is returning to his former team, Preston North End, today after making eight appearances for Stoke. While you always hope to notice a natural ability in a player right away, you also understand that it may take some time for the cobwebs to come loose.
In the games against Middlesbrough and Leeds, he has needed to show his decision making and technical ability. He has been able to spread himself in close contact and that’s a key part of a goalkeeper’s make-up. Peter Schmeichel is the best example. It wasn’t always necessarily good on the eye but it was the eyes of the cowering forwards, who looked like they might need a change of underwear, that really mattered. Get your body positioning and footwork right, make a decision over one, two or five yards, come out roaring, do it quickly, smother and deflect.
Hopefully he can play a big part in the final 10 games – but it’s no wonder that Stoke’s defence has looked jittery at times this season when the back line, which has been chopped and changed itself, has played in front of four different goalkeepers. Positional sense and understanding with the players around you, particularly on distancing, should never be underestimated and of course it is something that should build and improve with time.
It continues a conveyor belt of keepers at Stoke over the last few years and I’m still annoyed that Joe Bursik, an England under-21s keeper and our own player to develop, was let go cheaply without any vision for the long-term.
It is a major, major position to fill. The loan system is daft enough but you should never need a loan keeper barring a short-term emergency. You want your own player to be number one for a season and beyond. You want to have an eye on succession with a number two who is either brought in or has come through the Category One academy that can hopefully take the chance, whenever eventually it comes along, to take the shirt for themselves.
But everybody seems to be in the same boat with loans like the emperor’s new clothes. Tony Pulis might have used loans when Stoke won promotion but he used it to target specific positions. Too often since relegation, Stoke have brought in loanees willy nilly, players who can’t even get into the starting XI and just take up a seat on the bench and block the path for a kid of our own from the youth team. Sead Haksabanovic has made eight starts. Chiquinho was sent back after a couple of weeks. Luke Cundle isn’t starting.
It’s a nonsense and Stoke have to realise that if we want to properly build a squad. A proper number one goalkeeper of our own is written in capitals and underlined on my planning for next season.
In the here and now, however, Steven Schumacher has found a balanced team with the strong core we spoke about last week – and he’s kept it for two games in a row. I’m hoping he will keep it for three. Ki-Jana Hoever at right-back can get his strengths going with Million Manhoef on the outside of him going forward. Lynden Gooch can fill in on the left, linking with Bae Junho. There is a strong midfield three with different skills.
Niall Ennis is the main player in the team, known for his ability to keep threatening and attack spaces. He is a versatile player who can work off the ball to take up positions ready to strike. Ennis, Junho, and Manhoef can develop together, making various movements and manoeuvres early on. They need players with awareness and a willingness to upset defenders, who want to keep playing in front of them.
Recruiting players with a sharp positional sense is crucial, as it helps maintain the same rhythm by playing with the same teammates and in the same system. Ricardo Fuller and Marko Arnautovic have also demonstrated this skill, but it is essential to avoid taking a shirker and instead focus on having players with the right attributes. By working together, Ennis, Junho, and Manhoef can create a powerful attacking force that wins games or results.
