Football Season Guide

Stoke City endured their worst campaign under Mark Hughes as they finished well outside the top half of the table, registering the least number of goals and points in the last four seasons. Hughes admitted at the end of the campaign that his side fell short of expectations as they were not able to achieve the minimum aim of a top half finish. Performances across the board left much to be desired with no single player really able to stand out in an ordinary campaign and any hopes of strengthening the team during the summer was dashed even before the campaign ended with the club confirming that they will not be splashing the cash on new signings. It has been a poor transfer window so far for Stoke who have seen one of their key attacking forces in Marko Arnautovic leave for rivals West Ham United while three of their experienced players in Jonathan Walters, Phil Bardsley and Glenn Whelan have also been sold. Darren Fletcher has arrived on a free transfer while Stoke saw off the challenge from other clubs to bag Kurt Zouma on a loan deal. Stoke have not been able to address the key issues from last season, including a poor attack though Hughes will be hoping that Saido Berahino will find form. The striker is still searching for his first goal for Stoke after completing a move in January. Stoke have struggled during the pre-season, suffering defeats to teams plying their trade in lower divisions such as Crewe Alexandria, Sheffield United and German club FC St. Pauli. Unless Hughes manages to bring in new players before the end of the transfer window, it will be a weaker Stoke squad that will be heading into the new campaign and they will face a tough fight if they are to finish in the top half of the table.