[themaclad]

Stoke City have released defenders James Chester and Tommy Smith and forwards Tom Ince and Steven Fletcher.

Former Wales international Chester, 33, initially joined the Potters on loan from Aston Villa in January 2020 before signing permanently that August.

Smith, 30, joined from Huddersfield in 2019, a year after Ince, also 30, made the same move.

Former Scotland international Fletcher, 35, spent two years with the club after joining from Sheffield Wednesday.

The Potters, who finished 14th in the Championship, had previously announced that former England international Phil Jagielka, 39, had signed a new six-month deal.

The ex-Sheffield United and Everton centre-back joined in January after a stint with Derby and played 19 games.

[themaclad]

Stoke midfielder Mario Vrancic has joined Croatian club Rijeka on a season-long loan.

The 33-year-old was a regular for the Potters last season, making 35 appearances in all competitions and scoring three goals.

Vrancic won the Championship twice in three seasons with Norwich before joining Stoke last summer.

Manager Michael O'Neill said Vrancic had asked to move to Rijeka and that Stoke "wished him every success".

"Mario came to us and told us how appealing this move was to him and we felt that we could not stand in his way," added O'Neill.

The Bosnia-Herzegovina international departs a month after agreeing to extend his deal with Stoke until the end of next season.

Stoke finished 14th in the Championship, 13 points outside the play-offs, after 17 wins from 46 games.

[themaclad]

Wales midfielder Joe Allen will leave Stoke City when his contract expires at the end of the month.

The 32-year-old held talks about extending his stay but has decided to move on and has been linked with a return to Swansea, his first club.

Allen joined the Potters from Liverpool for £13m in July 2016 and scored 18 goals in 212 league appearances.

"It's tough to be leaving but I believe it's the right time for both myself and the club to be parting ways," he said.

"There's so many players and staff who I've loved working with and have made it a pleasure to be at the club," he told the Stoke website.