Despite an impressive 2-1 victory over Swansea City last time out, there's no getting away from the fact that Stoke City have endured a miserable campaign so far.

Pre-season hopes of promotion have evaporated rapidly and the target for Nathan Jones' men is now getting out of the relegation zone as quickly as possible.

Whilst there is no single reason for this early-season slump, the simple fact is that too many players just aren't performing. And, you could argue one of those has been Liam Lindsay.

The centre-back arrived at the bet365 Stadium with a good reputation after establishing himself as one of the most promising centre-backs in the Football League following his displays with Barnsley in the third tier.

However, as our graphic shows, he hasn't been able to replicate that form with the Potters.

Again, it has to be said that Lindsay is by no means the only Stoke man underachieving and it will have been hard for a new player to settle into this environment when the results aren't coming.

But, the former Partick Thistle centre-back has the ability to be producing strong displays right now.

In terms of clearances and interceptions, Lindsay has done reasonably well considering he has only been involved in eight games this season - and he hasn't completed 90 minutes in all of those.

So, that's the encouraging aspect right now. As an out and out defender, he has the tools to do a job in that sense.

Yet, he hasn't been as dominant as he perhaps should be against a direct opponent in terms of his aerial duels won, which is a concern.

Another worry would be how he appears to have struggled on the ball, with 81 losses in his own half far too much for any player at this level.

That's actually a surprise, considering Daniel Stendel placed a real emphasis on playing out from the back at Oakwell last season and it seemed to suit the centre-back.

Unfortunately for Lindsay, he, and his central defensive partners, will feel they are in a position where any mistake they do make is punished and that has been the case.

At 23-years-old he was never going to be the finished product and there is a good defender there but for whatever reason things haven't clicked for the summer signing at Stoke City right now.

The win against the Swans last time out may have relieved the pressure on the team as a whole and it's now down to the individuals to step up - something Lindsay will hope to do in the coming months as he looks to rediscover his best form and become a regular for Jones.

 

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