Stoke City: Solving six-figure puzzle could be help Steven Schumacher turn things around - View | OneFootball

Exciting Portuguese winger André Vidigal was signed by Stoke City from Portuguese club Marítimo under Alex Neil in the summer transfer window, but after a scintillating start to life in the Potteries, his form has since tailed off.

Vidigal signed a three-year deal for Stoke, with his transfer fee reported to be somewhere in the region of €500,000, according to the Portuguese outlet Record.

Despite a positive 2022/23 season in the Portuguese top-flight, where the winger scored eight goals in 32 appearances, according to statistics from Sofascore, he was unable to save Marítimo from relegation to the Portuguese second-tier via the relegation play-offs.

In a press release announcing the signing of the player, Stoke's technical director at the time, Ricky Martin, said: “Andre is an exciting player who carries a constant attacking threat, and is therefore someone we feel will entertain our fans as well as helping us secure results on the field.”

Vidigal enjoyed a brilliant debut against Rotherham United, where he scored twice and won the Player of the Match award in a 4-1 win at the Bet365 Stadium.

He followed this up by coming off the bench to score the winning goal against West Bromwich Albion in the first round of the EFL Cup.

However, after five goals in his first six appearances for the Potters, the 25-year-old's form tailed off, and so has the form of his team; it's been puzzling on both parts, although a change in the dugout might not have particularly helped.

Scottish manager Alex Neil was sacked in December after four straight losses which saw Stoke slump to 20th place in the EFL Championship table. Former Plymouth Argyle manager Steven Schumacher replaced him.

Steven Schumacher's strong record with offensive talent

Liverpool-born Schumacher's Plymouth side won League One last season with a huge 101 points, the joint-second highest ever League One points tally.

His team scored 82 league goals in 2022/23, which was the second most in the division. Ryan Hardie, Niall Ennis, Finn Azaz, and Morgan Whittaker all notched over 15 goals plus assists (FBREF.com).

It is perhaps Whittaker who has had the most interesting transformation under Schumacher's management. He first signed for the club on a season-long loan deal before the start of the 2022/23 season, before being bizarrely recalled by parent clubSwansea City in January, where he played just 425 Championship minutes in the remainder of the season.

Whittaker was reunited with the fans at Home Park this season, as he joined Plymouth on a club-record permanent deal. The winger is the third-highest goalscorer in the Championship this season with 19 goals. He has also recorded eight assists.

If Schumacher can work the same magic on Vidigal to turn around his form as he has done previously with a series of different talents at Plymouth, Stoke could have one of the most lethal attackers in the second tier among their ranks.

André Vidigal is an exciting prospect

The Portuguese attacker signed his first professional contract at Académica in his homeland before joining Fortuna Sittard in the Dutch second tier on a loan deal, which was later made permanent.

The Portugal youth international was a huge success in the Netherlands, scoring ten goals and getting two assists in 29 league games, according to statistics from Transfermarkt.com, as Fortuna Sittard won promotion to the top flight. He scored two league hat-tricks against Telstar and Almere City and added another in the KNVB Cup in a 5-0 win over Helmond Sport.

The 25-year-old's first career silverware came while on loan at Cypriot club APOEL. He helped them to the Cypriot top division title and later the Super Cup.

Vidigal returned to his native Portugal on loan the following season and enjoyed a second career promotion with Estoril, before permanently moving home to Madeira-based club Marítimo.

The talent is all there with Vidigal, and he showed how he can impact the English game earlier this season. If Schumacher can get the best out of him, it could well ease any of the doubt that surrounds him following a tough start at Stoke.