Portsmouth's Championship rivals sack manager as Cardiff City consider doing the same

Pompey's Championship rivals Stoke City have parted company with their head coach Steven Schumacher.

The Potters announced on Monday morning that they had parted ways with Schumacher, with his nine month reign coming to an end. Stoke suffered a 1-0 defeat to Oxford United on Saturday, which was their third from their opening five games.

Alex Morris and Ryan Shawcross will have been placed in caretaker charge of the team, as they gear up for their next fixture against Fleetwood Town in the Carabao Cup on Tuesday (September 17). Pompey play Stoke City in three weeks time on October 2 at the Bet365 Stadium.

In a club statement, sporting director Jonathan Walters said: “My role as Sporting Director is to make tough decisions that serve the long-term interests of Stoke City.

“After ongoing discussions with John Coates, we feel the time is right for a change in direction to bring success to the club.

“We have a young, dynamic squad that is eager to develop and a clear vision of how to achieve success, and we hope to announce a new appointment shortly. We will need the fans, staff, and players united in support to achieve our goals.

“As always in football, these decisions are difficult, and we wish Steven and his staff all the best for the future.”

Stoke City aren’t waiting around to find a successor either, as according to John Percy, a journalist for the Telegraph, they have made a move for Norwich City coach Narcis Pelach. He said in a Twitter post that the Canaries had granted them permission to speak to him, and if everything goes to plan then goalkeeping coach Paul Clements would also follow him.

Pelach is a 36-year-old coach who has been in England since July 2020, having joined Carlos Corberan at Huddersfield Town. He had two spells as interim manager of Huddersfield Town, and then in May 2023, he joined the coaching staff of Norwich under David Wagner, and was kept on despite Johannes Hoff Thorup’s appointment.

Elsewhere in the Championship, according to various outlets including the Telegraph, and talkSPORT, Cardiff City are considering parting ways with Erol Bulut. The Bluebirds have had a winless start to the season with their 1-1 draw against Swansea City their only point and goal of the season.

Cardiff suffered a 1-0 defeat to Derby County at the weekend, and despite being permitted to speak to the media after the game, Bulut opted not to speak to them, instead giving the responsibilities to first-team coach Omer Riza.

Cardiff along with Pompey, and Hull City are the only three teams in the Championship yet to win a game this season. John Mousinho is set to take his Pompey side to South Wales on October 22, and it will be interesting to see whether Bulut is still in charge, or whether Cardiff will end Bulut’s reign before then.