Mmaee was a regular starter under Schumacher following his appointment – he made an appearance in each of the boss’ first eight games in charge, but suddenly he was dropped from the squad entirely at the start of February.
The Potters started the season with Alex Neil in charge, but he was sacked in December and swiftly replaced by Steven Schumacher, who was headhunted from divisional rivals Plymouth Argyle.
Stoke spent big in the summer once again, spending an estimated £15.5 million (€18.10 million, according to Transfermarkt) as they brought in 19 new faces. However, this investment so far has returned very little.
One of Stoke’s more significant signings was that of striker Ryan Mmaee, who has had a mixed first season overall in England, but a bold decision by Schumacher that he has made recently has ended up working in Mmaee’s favour.
Schumacher told the BBC: “We had an internal disciplinary issue with Ryan. A few issues that have happened. I won’t go into the details, but there were a few things that weren’t the behaviour we expect from one of our players.
“We spoke to him after the Sunderland game and told him that this was the situation and that, for the time being he wouldn’t be considered for selection.”
He then returned on March 16 in the defeat to Norwich City and has impressed in the games since, particularly in the 2-2 draw with West Bromwich Albion on Saturday afternoon, with his link-up play helping create his team-mates plenty of chances.
Unfortunately, Mmaee was forced off during the second half with a hamstring injury, which will be assessed, but it does look as though his forced absence from first-team affairs has done the Moroccan the world of good.
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