"Enormous gamble" - Stoke City: Don Goodman questions Jon Walters, John Coates over Steven Schumacher call | OneFootball

Don Goodman discussed Stoke City's decision to sack Steven Schumacher

Don Goodman believes that Stoke City's decision to sack Steven Schumacher was an "enormous gamble".

Schumacher joined the Potters in December 2023 and helped the club avoid relegation to League One but after winning two of their opening five league fixtures this season, he was relieved of his duties in a decision that took plenty of people by surprise.

By no means was it an overly impressive start to the season but it was far from awful. As well as winning twice in the league, he also oversaw an impressive 5-0 win away to Middlesbrough in the EFL Cup, but it wasn't enough to keep his job at The bet365 Stadium.

He has since been replaced by former Huddersfield Town and Norwich City coach Narcis Pelach, an appointment that not too many people would have seen coming, but Goodman believes that Schumacher's Stoke City exit won't do his reputation any harm.

Don Goodman on Steven Schumacher's Stoke City sacking

Sky Sports EFL pundit Don Goodman believes that Jon Coates has taken a gamble with his decision to let Schumacher leave the club, and questions why he'd been sacked so early on in the season.

Goodman said: "I was very surprised by the sacking of Steven Schumacher. They'd won two of their first five Championship games and had won four of their first seven in all competitions.

"It's clear, and there are rumours that have suggested, that Schumacher was under pressure at the back-end of last season and that Stoke City had sounded out potential replacements for him.

"The good news for Steven Schumacher is that his reputation will not be damaged, and I’m sure he'll get a pretty decent job somewhere else in the future.

"As for Stoke, Jon Walters and John Coates have taken an enormous gamble. They must feel that they need to be challenging for a top-six spot this season and didn't feel that Steven Schumacher was the man to get them there.

"But sacking him after five games, with 11 new players coming this summer, it was a surprise. Why would you bring 11 players to the club and not give them time to get and settle in under the manager? It's a strange one."

Clubs shouldn't be put off by Steven Schumacher's Stoke City sacking

As Goodman alluded to above, while Schumacher now has a sacking on his CV, it shouldn't put clubs off from appointing him.

Since relegation in 2018, the Stoke City job has proved to be a poisoned chalice, and despite the resources the club have, no manager has been able to finish in the top-half with them, showing that it's a tough job, and it shouldn't reflect badly on Schumacher.

No doubt Schumacher will be linked with Championship jobs in the coming months, and they shouldn't be put off by his Stoke sacking, as he's shown in the past at Plymouth that he's an excellent manager.

The 40-year-old isn't the first and certainly won't be the last manager who is sacked by Stoke, and it's more of a reflection on the club than his managerial abilities.

It's clear that he's not too disheartened by his Potters' sacking, and wants to get back into the game as soon as he can. He told the BBC EFL podcast: "I know when some managers get sacked, they need that time out to have a breather, but I haven’t come out of it thinking I need a break. If anything, it’s given me a bit more fuel and fire in my belly."