Kevin Nolan: 'Stoke City defeat was harsh'

West Ham United captain Kevin Nolan has admitted that he was disappointed with his side's 3-1 defeat at Stoke City on Saturday.

The Hammers sit six points clear of the Premier League relegation zone after the result, which was their second league defeat in a row.

Nolan believes that the Hammers should have been awarded a penalty when Marc Muniesa appeared to handle the ball inside the area.

"It was very disappointing, because I felt we deserved something at Stoke," Nolan told West Ham's official website.

"If we got the penalty, it goes to 2-2 and your back up and then who knows? If we had come off the pitch with a 2-2 draw, then I think people would have probably said 'that's a fair enough result' and I think 3-1 flattered them a bit."

West Ham return to action on Saturday when they host Manchester United.