Stoke City succumbed to a 1-0 defeat at home to West Bromwich Albion in a Premier League clash that controversially saw the hosts reduced to nine men within the first half hour.
Ibrahim Afellay saw red after lashing out at Craig Gardner following the Baggies man's tackle in the 25th minute, while Charlie Adam was sent off just six minutes later for a stamp on Craig Dawson.
It looked like the Potters could keep their clean sheet until the break, but Salomon Rondon struck what proved to be the winner on the stroke of half time.
Sports Mole goes over the action at the Britannia Stadium to determine if West Brom were worthy winners.
Match statistics
STOKE
Shots: 13
On target: 5
Possession: 49%
Corners: 6
Fouls: 4
WEST BROM
Shots: 15
On target: 5
Possession: 51%
Corners: 5
Fouls: 9
Was the result fair?
Based on the above statistics and balance of play, Stoke were well in with a chance of getting something from the game. Prior to the dismissal of Afellay and Adam, they were all over the Baggies, but even when they fell down to nine men, they more than held their own and even had the visiting defence panicking in the latter stages. The red cards will be heavily debated, with Mark Hughes and the Potters fans wondering whether they were actually worthy of being sendings-off. In answer to the original question, a draw would have been the fair result.
Stoke's performance
The Potters began well, with Xherdan Shaqiri and Adam at the heart of everything. The early warnings were there, however, as Adam launched into a strong challenge on Darren Fletcher which went unpunished 22 minutes in, and James Morrison came close to volleying the Baggies into the lead moments later. Stoke struggled to contain their opponents during the remainder of the first half, which saw Rondon put the visitors a goal up, but after the break the Potters were more organised and gave as good as they got.
West Brom's performance
Put simply, they were second best until the half-hour mark. Though they did weigh in with the best chance of the game pre-dismissals, they were being played off the park by Stoke's creative players. The Baggies struck when their opponents were at their weakest - that is, down to nine men before they had a chance to regroup. Rondon duly struck to put his side in the lead moments before the half-time whistle, though he had wasted a number of good attempts beforehand. Following the restart, you would have thought that both sides had the same amount of men on the pitch, as it seemed quite even, with the Baggies simply unable to break down a rigidly organised Stoke back line.
Sports Mole's man of the match
Marko Arnautovic: In a game devoid of standout performers, the Austrian forward edges it for singlehandedly turning his side's performance around, to the point that they could have even got something from the game. His work-rate and never-say-die attitude lifted his whole side since coming on with 20 minutes left to play.
Biggest gaffe
Ibrahim Afellay's reaction to Craig Gardner's tackle was completely needless. Yes, it was a very harsh red card and it was a bad foul - for which the Baggies man was rightly booked - but the ex-Barcelona man was the architect of his own undoing, it proved the beginning of the end for Stoke's prospects of getting anything from the game.
Referee performance
Michael Oliver's performance will dominate headlines in Staffordshire for the next few days for sending off two Stoke players and for denying Mame Biram Diouf a seemingly legit free kick in the 76th minute, but his strictness seems to be the issue here rather than getting decisions wrong outright. Adam's challenge on Darren Fletcher 22 minutes in, which left the ex-Manchester United man hobbling, was waved away, while Gardner was also punished - albeit with a booking rather than a dismissal - for his part in the Afellay incident. Firm but fair.
What next?
Stoke: The Potters visit Arsenal in the Premier League on Saturday, September 12.
West Brom: The Baggies host Southampton on Saturday, September 12.
Giuseppe Labellarte
