 During his time with AZ Alkmaar, the Dutch media frequently compared him to English midfielder Steven Gerrard due to his strong presence in midfield, his vision and his technical ability.Schaars signed for the Portuguese side Sporting Clube de Portugal on 16 June 2011 on a transfer worth 850,000 euros.He was one of many new players bought by Luís Godinho Lopes under the management of Domingos Paciência who also bought other foreign players like Alberto Rodríguez, André Carrillo, Elias Trindade, Fabián Rinaudo, Oguchi Onyewu and Ricky van Wolfswinkel.