MX23RW : Thursday, March 28 12:56:50| >> :60:2451:2451:

Player Ratings: West Ham United 1-1 Stoke City

Sports Mole rates each of the players that took part in Saturday's Premier League game between West Ham United and Stoke City.

West Ham United and Stoke City played out a 1-1 draw in this afternoon's Premier League clash at Upton Park.

Aaron Cresswell opened the scoring for the hosts in the seventh minute with a well-taken free kick that left Asmir Begovic stranded as it soared into the top corner.

The Potters soon got themselves back in the game and laid siege to the Hammers' goalmouth, with Marko Arnautovic twice getting the ball in the back of the net, but both efforts were disallowed for offside.

Just as it seemed like West Ham would hang onto the win, one last throw of the dice saw Ryan Shawcross's cutback bundled in by Arnautovic, and with no offside flag coming up this time, the visitors were able to celebrate coming away with a point.

Sports Mole rates each of the players that took part in today's game, to see who shone and who let their side down.


Aaron Cresswell of West Ham celebrates scoring the first goal during the Barclays Premier League match between West Ham United and Stoke City at Boleyn Ground on April 11, 2015© Getty Images

WEST HAM

Goal

Adrian: Rarely truly tested despite the opposition's domination. Made some good saves when called upon and organised his defence well. (6/10)

Defence

Winston Reid: Quick across the ground and rarely caught out positionally. Combined well with Collins to handle Stoke's attackers, but had a difficult afternoon against Diouf. (6/10)

James Collins: Good in the air against both Walters and Diouf, a difficult defender to break down during set pieces. (7/10)

Carl Jenkinson: Consistently struggled against Moses. Marginally better at keeping Arnautovic at bay, although was beaten too easily in one-on-one situations. (5/10)

Aaron Cresswell: Defended well all afternoon, stifling Arnautovic as best he could, and was willing to join forward to help out the attack whenever he could. His free kick early in the first half was a stunning effort that will be replayed over and over again. (8/10)

Midfield

Alex Song: Decent on the whole but his concentration was found lacking at times defensively, with Charlie Adam able to get the better of him on a number of occasions. (6/10)

Stewart Downing: Made a bright start but faded out of the game quickly and failed to create many opportunities for his teammates. (6/10)

Mark Noble: Tidy in possession and put a good shift in. No lack of effort from the veteran, even if he took the safe option of passing sideways too often rather than looking to split the Stoke defence. (7/10)

Cheikhou Kouyate: Strong in the tackle and full of energy, handled N'Zonzi's charging runs well. Offered little in an attacking sense, though, and was caught out on the ball on a few occasions. (6/10)

Attack

Enner Valencia: Caused Stoke problems all afternoon with his pace and skills. Won the free kick from which Cresswell opened the scoring and was proactive in tracking back and helping out his side defensively. (7/10)

Diafra Sakho: Much of his afternoon was spent back concentrating on keeping Stoke back, but carried the ball forward well on the counter. (7/10)

Substitutes

Kevin Nolan: Helped to shore up the midfield when he came on, but failed to push up the pitch, leaving Carlton Cole mostly isolated up front. (6/10)

Morgan Amalfitano: Provided extra options on the left, but his final ball wasn't the strongest. (6/10)

Carlton Cole: Made little impact save for winning a few headers. (6/10)


Marko Arnautovic for Stoke on January 26, 2015© Getty Images

Stoke

Goal

Asmir Begovic: Dealt well with the majority of West Ham's attacks, but will be disappointed to have been beaten on his side for Cresswell's free-kick. (6/10)

Defence

Marc Wilson: Physically strong and powerful, but was unable to keep up with the speed of Sakho. (6/10)

Philipp Wollscheid: A dominant display from the German, who dealt well against the Hammers' attack. (7/10)

Ryan Shawcross: Decent in possession and happy to carry the ball forward when given space, but looked uncomfortable tracking Valencia out wide. (7/10)

Geoff Cameron: Struggled to deal with the evasive running of Valencia early on, but improved with time. A constant source of menace, courtesy of his long throws. (8/10)

Midfield

Glenn Whelan: Put in a strong performance in the middle, although lost possession on a number of occasions, and was constantly harangued by the opposition. (7/10)

Victor Moses: Lively on the left flank and regularly got the better of Jenkinson, running at him before cutting inside and crossing or shooting with his preferred right foot. (8/10)

Steven N'Zonzi: Kept at bay in the opening stages of the game but soon came into his own. Protected the back four well and was a constant danger when pushing up to join the attack. (8/10)

Charlie Adam: The lynchpin of the Stoke midfield, he pulled the strings and shifted the ball well, while also posing a threat from set-pieces and with strikes from distance. (8/10)

Marko Arnautovic: Was creative and strong on the ball, and fully deserved his equalising goal. Credit to him for not letting his two previous disallowed strikes get to him. (8/10)

Attack

Jonathan Walters: Worked hard and ran the channels the best he could, but struggled to have much impact as a lone striker, and when moved to the right, continued to have little end product. (7/10)

Substitutes

Erik Pieters: Offered Stoke a good option going forward on the left flank and nullified Jenkinson and Downing's forays into the final third. (7/10)

Stephen Ireland: Showed several near touches on the ball but failed to threaten with a number of efforts from long range. (6/10)

Mame Biram Diouf: Powerful and quick, was unlucky to see his pinpoint header rebound off the post. (7/10)


ID:216536: cacheID:216536:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:9633:No Data Analysis info
Restore Data
Share this article now:
West Ham United's English defender Aaron Cresswell scores from this free kick during the English Premier League football match between West Ham United and Stoke City at Upton Park in London on April 11, 2015
Read Next:
Arnautovic equaliser denies West Ham
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Arsenal28204470244664
2Liverpool28197265263964
3Manchester CityMan City28196363283563
4Aston Villa29175760421856
5Tottenham HotspurSpurs28165759421753
6Manchester UnitedMan Utd28152113939047
7West Ham UnitedWest Ham2912894650-444
8Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton2811985044642
9Wolverhampton WanderersWolves28125114244-241
10Newcastle UnitedNewcastle281241259481140
11Chelsea27116104745239
12Fulham29115134344-138
13Bournemouth2898114152-1135
14Crystal Palace2878133348-1529
15Brentford2975174154-1326
16Everton2887132939-1025
17Luton TownLuton2957174260-1822
18Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest2967163551-1621
19Burnley2945202963-3417
20Sheffield UnitedSheff Utd2835202474-5014


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!