Stoke City: Steven Schumacher and Jon Walters facing scary looming task - View | OneFootball

It has been an incredibly disappointing season for Stoke City in the Championship.

Optimism was high at the bet365 Stadium heading into the season after a huge influx of summer signings, but the Potters made a slow start to the campaign, resulting in the sacking of Alex Neil in December.

Steven Schumacher made the move from Plymouth Argyle to replace Neil, and while the 39-year-old has found it tough so far, there are signs that he is beginning to turn around the club's fortunes.

After dropping into the relegation zone in February, Stoke's form has improved, and they have pulled away from the bottom three, but with games against some of their fellow strugglers over the coming weeks, it could be a tense end to the season.

Whatever the outcome of the campaign, Schumacher and new sporting director Jon Walters are facing a big summer, and they will need to rebuild the squad and create a better culture at a club that has underperformed for a number of years.

Stoke City facing a crucial summer

It has been another disappointing season for Stoke, and poor recruitment is to blame for many of their problems.

In total, 23 players have arrived at the bet365 Stadium over the course of the campaign, and while there are notable exceptions such as Ki-Jana Hoever, Wouter Burger and Andre Vidigal, very few of those signings could be considered a success.

Former technical director Ricky Martin paid the price for the underwhelming transfer business as he was sacked in February, with ex-Potters striker Walters returning to the club as his replacement.

Schumacher will be keen to sell some of those who are not in his plans, but with many on long contracts having only joined the club last summer, as well as receiving big wages, it could be a challenge to offload them.

The club's high wage bill could also limit their ability to bring in new players, with much of former manager Michael O'Neill's excellent work in trimming the squad and balancing the books undone by the spending in the summer.

It is not just recruitment where Schumacher and Walters will need to focus their attention, they will need to give the club a cultural reset and instill a winning mentality.

An anonymous employee opened up on some of the issues at the club last month, telling The Athletic: "They’ve never got the culture right.

"It’s a very cold culture. It’s the one club I’ve been at where there’s no collective will to want to win. I’ve been at other clubs where players know what the badge means and who they’re playing for. It’s about livelihoods and jobs.

"At Stoke, it’s nothing like that. It’s soulless. There’s no oomph about it. There’s never any suggestion of getting people together, ‘Let’s win the title; one club, one team’. None of that."

With Schumacher still new to management at the age of 39, and Walters embarking on his first sporting director role, the size of the task ahead looks daunting for the inexperienced duo, but there are reasons for Stoke fans to be hopeful.

Steven Schumacher and Jon Walters should be trusted with Stoke City rebuild

It was not long ago that Schumacher's future at Stoke looked uncertain, with reports claiming that Gareth Ainsworth, Tony Pulis and Adrian Heath were under consideration as potential replacements.

However, since dropping into the bottom three after the defeat at Cardiff City in February, the Potters have beaten three play-off contenders in Middlesbrough, Preston North End and Hull City, as well as coming back from two goals down to draw with West Bromwich Albion.

Schumacher has achieved results under huge pressure, proving that the dressing room are fully behind him, and underlining his character and leadership skills.

He has showed plenty of potential in the early stages of his managerial career, leading Plymouth to the League One title last season, and he could be the perfect man to implement the cultural changes desperately needed at the bet365 Stadium.

Walters may not have much previous boardroom experience, but he knows what it is like to be part of a successful Stoke team having played a key role during Tony Pulis' tenure, and he has spoken about his plans to take the club forward.

"The opportunity is there now to grow the team, grow the squad and really push on. To do that it’s about people. It always comes down to people. It’s about the people you have around you in the building," Walters said, quoted via StokeonTrentLive.

"Then stripping it back again it’s about the DNA of Stoke City, the DNA of this city in itself not just the club, and building the club based on that: a relentless attitude, hard work, a drive.

"You know me, I’m constant. I’m always working, always thinking what’s next, how can we innovate? And I’ll own what we do. There will be time during this process that I make mistakes, there will be, that’s part and parcel of football but I’ll hold my hands up when that happens. I want humble people in the building, humble people that have a drive and energy to take this club to the next level.

"I see what Simon King is doing here behind the scenes, what every department here is doing behind the scenes. People are getting on board and really excited about what this club can be."

If Walters can deliver on his words, better days could be ahead for the Potters next season.