Ahead of the 2016/17 Premier League we look at players whose absence last season affected their teams, and how their return can boost their side for the new campaign.
Ryan Shawcross
In his eighth full season as a Premier League regular, injury resigned Stoke City captain Ryan Shawcross to the fewest appearances of his top-flight career to date.
He managed only 20 PL matches in 2015/16, having never previously featured fewer than 28 times in a single campaign.
Although Stoke achieved a third consecutive ninth-place finish, statistics show that Mark Hughes’ side missed their experienced leader.
Stoke kept 10 clean sheets last season but only three of those came when the 28-year-old was not in the side. With Shawcross in their defence Stoke conceded 26 times, but this rose to 29 for the 18 league matches the player missed.
Shawcross’s contributions at the bet365 Stadium are reinforced by his defensive statistics.
Despite injuries preventing a long run of matches, the centre-back averaged 4.99 clearances per 90 minutes in the Premier League, second only in the Stoke ranks to Philipp Wollscheid.
Clearances by Stoke players in 2015/16
| Matches (min. 10) | Clearances (per 90 mins) | |
| Philipp Wollscheid | 31 | 5.50 |
| Ryan Shawcross | 20 | 4.99 |
| Geoff Cameron | 30 | 3.74 |
| Marc Muniesa | 15 | 3.56 |
| Glenn Whelan | 37 | 3.53 |
With Shawcross returning to feature six times in April and May, Hughes will be hoping his captain can play a big part in taking Stoke to uncharted territory in the Premier League table.
