Since relegation from the Premier League in 2018, Stoke City have found life in the Championship to be more difficult than expected.
Many people thought the Potters would coast to promotion during the 2018/19 season, but they struggled badly, and nearly six years on, the club are battling to remain in the division.
| Stoke City’s league finishes since relegation from the Premier League | |
|---|---|
| Season | Finish |
| 2018/19 | 16th |
| 2019/20 | 15th |
| 2020/21 | 14th |
| 2021/22 | 14th |
| 2022/23 | 16th |
Stoke, who are supported by the wealthy Coates family, have failed to mount any kind of a promotion drive since their Premier League relegation, demonstrating that lavishing enormous sums of money on player salaries is not always a guarantee of success.
In light of this, we examined Stoke City’s best paid player over the previous eight seasons using Capology.
Wilfried Bony is Stoke’s estimated highest earner over the past 8 seasons
It is important to note that Capology is not a perfect tool and just provides estimations, but even so, it provides useful information about player salaries.
With a £100,000 weekly salary, Wilfried Bony is the best paid player at Stoke for the past eight years, according to Capology.
| Stoke City’s highest paid players from the last 8 seasons – Capology | ||
|---|---|---|
| Season | Player | Wage |
| 2016/17 | Wilfried Bony | £100,000 |
| 2017/18 | Saido Berahino | £80,000 |
| 2018/19 | Mame Diouf | £65,000 |
| 2019/20 | Mame Diouf | £65,000 |
| 2020/21 | Joe Allen | £57,500 |
| 2021/22 | Joe Allen | £57,500 |
| 2022/23 | Axel Tuanzebe | £50,000 |
| 2023/24 | Ki-Jana Hoever | £40,385 |
Bony joined the Potters on loan from Manchester City for the 2016-17 season, so it remains to be seen how the wages were split, but regardless of how much Stoke contributed, they certainly didn’t get value for money.
The Ivorian striker’s move to the Bet365 Stadium came with high expectations after a spell at Swansea City which saw him become one of the best strikers in English football.
His time at The Etihad had seen him used sparingly, but that was understandable given the quality and their disposal and there was still excitement at Stoke when his signing was announced.
However, Bony’s time at the Potters proved an absolute disaster for a number of reasons.
In total, Bony made just 11 appearances for the club, scoring just two goals, which both came in the same game against former club Swansea as the Potters recorded a 3-1 win.
He only made nine starts in his career with the team, and after losing manager Mark Hughes’ favor, he was never included in the matchday roster from February on.
This meant that, starting in February, Bony was not even a member of a single squad, even though he was paid an estimated £100,000 a week.
The striker’s one season at Stoke will go down in history as a total bust and a financial waste.
Wilfried Bony’s career since leaving Stoke City
Bony has enjoyed what you’d call a nomadic career since leaving the Potters.
The footballer started off by returning permanently to Swansea, but he struggled with injuries and never quite found the form he had displayed in his previous stint in South Wales.
In January 2019, he went on loan to Al-Arabi in Qatar before the Swans cut him loose.
Later in 2020, Bony joined with Al-Ittihad of the Saudi Premier League before departing the team.
After losing his club for more than a year, he continued to train with League Two team Newport County because he was still a Swansea resident and wanted to stay in shape.
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