Stoke City transfer agreement with PSG will still send shudders down the spine of many at the Potters | OneFootball

Jese flopped at the bet365 Stadium after such a promising start

Stoke City endured one of their worst seasons in recent times in 2017/18, amid relegation from the Premier League, and one statement signing was expected to shine but turned out to be a huge flop that contributed to their demise and eventual drop to the Championship.

The Potters had been on a downward turn for six months prior to the summer of 2017, but signings like Eric-Maxim Choupo-Moting, Kurt Zouma and Bruno Martins-Indi had given supporters hope that they could build on a 13th-placed finish the year before.

As well as those arrivals, one in particular caught the eye of fans in ST4 and the wider footballing world, as two-time Champions League-winning Paris Saint-Germain winger Jese Rodriguez joined Stoke on loan from the French giants for the season to replace the outgoing Marko Arnautovic.

Jese was just 24-years-old at the time, and was looking to turn his career around after a tough first season with PSG. Despite an amazing start in red and white, he turned out to be one of the Potters' worst signings in recent memory, and his spell is more remembered for his off-field antics than anything he actually produced on the pitch.

Jese started well but turned into a nightmare signing for Stoke

Jese joined Stoke with the season already underway in mid-August, and so had trained with his new teammates just once before lining up in Mark Hughes' starting eleven in their first home game of the season against Arsenal.

The Spaniard had a quiet first 45 minutes for his new side, but burst into life almost immediately in the second period, as Saido Berahino played him through on goal and he finished coolly past Petr Cech for a dream debut goal at the Boothen End.

Stoke hung on to win 1-0, and Potters fans thought they had a new star to help propel them back to the top-half of the Premier League, but that was about as good as it got for Jese in red and white.

He was handed starting berths in six of the next seven top-flight outings, with one more assist in a 7-2 thrashing at the hands of Manchester City, but then failed to start from the off in any of the next six games before being internally disciplined by the club following a win over Swansea City at the start of December, after he had left the bench and walked down the tunnel on 70 minutes.

A lot of Jese's struggles could also be attributed to his unfortunate circumstances back home in Las Palmas, as he went on compassionate leave to be with his ill son after the Swansea game. He only returned to England at the end of January, by which time, Paul Lambert was in charge after Hughes had been sacked, and Stoke were in a relegation battle.

The then-24-year-old's first appearance back after being away was marred with more controversy than ever before, as he stepped off the bench against Brighton & Hove Albion and won a late penalty with the score locked at 1-1 and the Potters in dire need of three points.

He and Charlie Adam argued over who was to take the spot-kick and had to be split up by captain Ryan Shawcross, and it was the Scottish veteran who stepped up to take it, but he slipped and saw his penalty saved by Mat Ryan in what could have been a huge turning point in Stoke's season if he had scored to win the game.

Jese was let off by new boss Lambert, likely due to him wanting to keep the peace in a tense time with relegation looming, but after he was afforded further leave at the start of April, he then failed to show up for training when he was supposed to two weeks later.

Speculation then emerged that the Potters were looking to cancel his loan deal early due to his continued absence, and his loan spell was soon officially ended in early May as the club confirmed that he had been given unpaid leave until the end of the season, despite being in real need of attacking quality to keep them in the top-flight with just two games left.

Stoke were soon relegated after a loss to Crystal Palace, as their ten-year stay in the Premier League came to an emotional end. Jese's signing highlighted all that had gone wrong with the club and led them to such a sudden demise. He had started brilliantly, but then was unable to stay focused or even seem bothered about helping the Potters stay up.

Jese failed to ever realise his potential at Stoke and beyond in his career

The Spaniard was a very highly-rated youngster in his time at Real Madrid, and helped them to win two Champions League titles and a Club World Cup in his time with their senior team before a €25 million move to PSG in 2016.

His struggles to settle in Paris saw him loaned to hometown club Las Palmas, but his time there was hampered by off-field troubles, and then Stoke, which was clearly a terrible loan spell. After he left the Potters, he was made to train alone at PSG ahead of a move away.

Jese soon moved back on loan to La Liga to Real Betis, but they again elected not to sign him permanently after an underwhelming six months, then spent the whole 2019/20 campaign with Sporting CP before his contract with the Parisians was finally cancelled in late 2020.

He has been unable to ever hold down a permanent club ever since, and he now plays in the Malaysian Super League for Johor Darul Ta'zim at 33-years-old, following another spell with Las Palmas, then seasons at Ankaragücü, Sampdoria and Coritiba.

It is pretty clear that Jese's time with Stoke was not an anomaly in his career. He was always blighted by off-field troubles, and the Potters made a real mistake by signing a player with such a poor attitude at a time when they needed one that would give their all for the club in the face of relegation trouble.