Sign up NOW for your daily Stoke City newsletter straight to your inbox Subscribe Thank you for subscribing See our privacy notice Invalid Email

Jese Rodriguez is back at Stoke City.

The forward has joined in training again under Paul Lambert, having been given compassionate leave over recent weeks to spend time with his son Nyan in hospital.

Nyan has needed specialist care in Madrid after being born premature last summer and Jese, on loan to Stoke from Paris St Germain for the season, was given permission to stay closer to his family when his health deteriorated before Christmas.

It was claimed in Spain and France that Stoke had terminated his contract and he was close to rejoining home town club Las Palmas or Real Betis for the second half of the campaign – although the Sentinel maintained those reports were wide of the mark.

Now the 24-year-old has returned to England, where Stoke have changed managers as Paul Lambert has replaced Mark Hughes.

He has posted a photograph from Clayton Wood on Instagram with the message: “Good to be back in training, can’t wait to be out there helping the team. Thanks to all of you for always supporting me.”

Jese watched from the stands yesterday as Stoke beat Huddersfield 2-0 in Lambert’s first game in charge.

Having scored the winner against Arsenal on his debut, he has not started a game since October.