Stoke City failed to get the best out of 2021 loan signing who excelled at Sunderland | OneFootball

Stoke City must have watched Jack Clarke's Sunderland exploits with regret after he failed to impress for the Potters

Stoke City have never seriously challenged the Championship play-off positions since suffering relegation from the Premier League back in 2018.

In fact, since returning to the second tier, the Potters have never managed a top-half finish, much to the disappointment of supporters who must yearn for their club's top-flight days.

After dropping back into the Championship, the West Midlands outfit have also made their fair share of notable signings, such as that of former Swansea City man Sam Clucas, who joined the Potters ahead of the 2018/19 season.

But one player who did not make the best account of himself during his Stoke days was 2021 loan signing Jack Clarke, who now plies his trade in the Premier League for Ipswich Town.

Stoke failed to get the best out of Clarke

The winger has had somewhat of a mixed footballing career to date, after first bursting onto the scene with boyhood club Leeds United as a teenager.

He notably scored the Whites' first goal of the game on 23rd December 2018, when they trailed Aston Villa 2-0 at half-time, and went on to win 3-2 courtesy of Kemar Roofe's late strike.

In total, he notched two goals and two assists for the West Yorkshire outfit during the 2018/19 Championship campaign, which was enough to convince Premier League Tottenham Hotspur to snap up his services for a fee of £10m the following summer.

As part of the deal, he returned to the Whites on loan for the 2019/20 season, but he made just three appearances for the Elland Road side before being deployed on loan to Queens Park Rangers.

By January 2021, Clarke had made three senior appearances for Spurs, with two outings in the Europa League, and one in the FA Cup, so the Potters were keen to allow his talent to shine through in the Championship, and secured his services on loan.

However, during his 14 appearances on loan with the West Midlands side, he did not manage to score a single goal, as the Potters failed to get the best out of him.

Stoke would soon regret Clarke's lack of form during his time with them, as he went on to score one goal as well as creating three assists during a loan spell with Sunderland in the latter half of the 2021/22 season, which helped the Black Cats secure promotion back to the Championship via the play-offs.

The former Leeds man agreed permanent terms with the Black Cats ahead of the 2022/23 season, and produced a solid return of nine goals and 12 assists, as the North East side secured a second tier play-off spot, just one year after winning promotion from League One.

He then notched a tally of 15 goals and four assists last season, which was perhaps even more remarkable, given the fact that the Stadium of Light side finished just 16th in the Championship table last term.

After establishing a talismanic status on Wearside, he deservedly moved to Premier League, Ipswich, and earned his top-flight return two summers on from leaving Spurs.

The Potters must surely regret the fact that they failed to get the best out of Clarke, given that he subsequently went on to thrive at second tier level with the Black Cats.