Three years on from his arrival from Barcelona, the uncertainty over Bojan’s future at Stoke City after spending the second half of last season out on loan is not only an indictment on the one-time next-Messi-prodigy’s ever-stuttering career, but also the revolution in philosophy Mark Hughes brought to the Bet365 Stadium following Tony Pulis’ abrupt dismissal back in summer 2013.
Measuring in at just 5 foot 7 and famed far more for his diminutive, technical qualities than physicality or industriousness, Bojan’s move to the Potteries twelve months on from Pulis’ departure further highlighted the tactical shift between Hughes and his predecessor, whose emphasis on attritional football had taken Stoke from the depths of the Championship to the middle of the top flight but eventually proved to be the sword he fell on. The fans were bored, the board were bored and the progress had plateaued.
Hughes offered a more expansive style of play and after a solid first season in the dugout that saw Stoke record an all-time highest ninth-place finish in the Premier League, Bojan was one of the signings to further implement it – to accelerate what had been a steady, season-long transition from Pulis’ ideals to a brand of football that would make Stoke a more desirable club for fans, investors, neutrals and future signings alike.
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