MX23RW : Monday, May 13 02:04:31| >> :600:101795:101795:

Player Ratings: Stoke City 2-2 West Ham United

Sports Mole runs the rule over the individual performances in Stoke City's 2-2 draw with West Ham United at the Britannia Stadium.

West Ham United fought their way back from two goals down to rescue a 2-2 draw away at Stoke City this afternoon.

After Victor Moses and Mame Biram Diouf had given Stoke the lead, Stewart Downing teed up Enner Valencia with a sublime cross before grabbing the equaliser himself.

Here, Sports Mole runs the rule over all the performances - both good and bad - at the Britannia Stadium.



Victor Moses of Stoke City celebrates scoring the opening goal during the Barclays Premier League match against West Ham United on November 1, 2014© Getty Images

STOKE CITY

Goal

Asmir Begovic: The Bosnian goalkeeper was left a little exposed for the first goal, but perhaps should have done more to keep out Downing's strike. Although it came through a mass of bodies, he got a hand to the shot before it crept inside the near post. (6/10)

Defence

Geoff Cameron: The American has played in midfield in recent weeks, but seemed to make the transition to full-back seamlessly. His link-up play with Jonathan Walters was a feature throughout the first half and he almost netted a late winner. However, harsher critics might suggest that he was partly to blame for both West Ham goals. (7/10)

Ryan Shawcross: Whisper it quietly, but the formidable centre-back may be adding a touch of class to his game. He saw a late volley charged down shortly after making a rampaging run forward. He defended well for the most part and made a crucial block to deflect a goal-bound shot from Valencia over the bar. (8/10)

Marc Wilson: Wilson has been preferred as Shawcross' defensive partner so far this season and put in another decent showing today. He rarely put a foot wrong, but will be disappointed to have conceded two second-half goals. (7/10)

Erik Pieters: The Dutch defender linked well with Moses in the first half, but struggled to contain Downing after the break, with his opponent influential in the West Ham comeback. (6/10)

Midfield

Jonathan Walters: You can never fault the winger's commitment. He did not stop running from the first minute to the last and teed up Diouf with a good cross after forcing Aaron Cresswell into a mistake. (7/10)

Steven N'Zonzi: The towering midfielder was at the centre of everything positive Stoke did in the first half, but failed to stem the wave of attacks from the visitors as he lost grip of proceedings after the break. (7/10)

Steve Sidwell: The former Fulham man was not as dominant as his midfield partner, but held his position well and ensured that his side kept ticking over, allowing the more creative players to venture forward. (6/10)

Victor Moses: For an hour, he was everything that the YouTube highlights reels of him suggest. His positive running caused havoc in the West Ham defence and as scrappy as his goal was, they all count. However, his influence waned as he struggled to hit the heights of his first-half showing. (8/10)

Attack

Mame Biram Diouf: A mixed afternoon for the forward. His finish for the second goal was clinical, but he wasted two great chances either side of the break which would have put the game beyond doubt. He led the line very well, though, and there were promising signs of a fruitful partnership with Bojan. (7/10)

Bojan: The Spaniard was easily the best player on the pitch. He has been disappointing so far this term, but the way that he glided past West Ham defenders time and time again was a joy to watch. The only thing missing was a goal. (9/10)

Substitutes

Charlie Adam: Had very little time to make an impact on the game, although his set pieces were of good quality. (6/10)



Stewart Downing of West Ham celebrates scoring his team's second goal with his team-mates during the Barclays Premier League match on November 1, 2014© Getty Images

WEST HAM UNITED

Goal

Adrian: The Spanish stopper was certainly the busier of the two goalkeepers and made good saves from Diouf, N'Zonzi and Cameron to keep his side in the game. (8/10)

Defence

Carl Jenkinson: The full-back was given a torrid time by Moses for an hour as the winger continually skipped away from him. His performance improved slightly in the second half, but Jenkinson will not be happy with this showing. (5/10)

Winston Reid: The New Zealand defender was solid enough in his short stint on the pitch, but was replaced 24 minutes in after picking up an injury. (6/10)

James Collins: The Welsh centre-back arguably kept his side in the game with a number of brave blocks in the first half and cajoled his teammates through some sticky situations. (7/10)

Aaron Cresswell: Cresswell's been in superb form so far this season, but was nowhere near his best today. He was given little protection by Morgan Amalfitano in the first half, but he was certainly to blame for Stoke's second goal. (5/10)

Midfield

Mark Noble: Noble is usually so good in possession, but he gave the ball away sloppily in the first minute of the game, which set the tone for a poor performance by the skipper. (5/10)

Alex Song: The Cameroonian showed flashes of his quality, but was quite wasteful in the final third and too easily overrun for the first hour. A nasty challenge on Diouf was not penalised and he was lucky to stay on the pitch. (6/10)

Cheikhou Kouyate: The summer signing came into the side to replace the injured Diafra Sakho, but was anonymous for the majority of the game. (5/10)

Morgan Amalfitano: This was not a game that Amalfitano ever looked interested in. From the very first whistle, he was lazy in tracking back and wasteful in possession. Sam Allardyce quite rightly hauled him off at half time. (4/10)

Stewart Downing: For the first hour, Downing's biggest contribution was to constantly berate his teammates for poor service. So, he decided to show them how it is done with a sumptuous cross for Valencia's goal and a good strike to score the second. West Ham's standout performer. (8/10)

Attack

Enner Valencia: The forward looked lost without his strike partner Sakho in the first half. However, he was much more influential in a freer role after the break and grabbed himself another goal. (7/10)

Substitutes

James Tomkins: Following an injury layoff, Tomkins looked a little rusty after he replaced Reid in the 24th minute and really struggled to get to grips with Stoke's mobile forward duo. (5/10)

Carlton Cole: The burly forward replaced Amalfitano at half time and, despite seeing little of the ball, his presence freed up space for the likes of Downing and Valencia to create openings. (6/10)

Kevin Nolan: Nolan returned from injury in a deep-lying midfield role and, although he did little for either goal, his introduction coincided with West Ham's turnaround. (6/10)


ID:185904: cacheID:185904:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:10935:No Data Analysis info
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Diafra Sakho of West Ham United celebrates scoring his team's second goal with Enner Valencia of West Ham United during the Barclays Premier League match between West Ham United and Manchester City at Boleyn Ground on October 25, 2014
Read Next:
Preview: Stoke vs. West Ham
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
CLeicester CityLeicester463141189414897
3Leeds UnitedLeeds462791081433890
4Southampton462691187632487
5West Bromwich AlbionWest Brom4621121370472375
6Norwich CityNorwich4621101579641573
7Hull City461913146860870
8Middlesbrough46209177162969
9Coventry CityCoventry4617131670591164
10Preston North EndPreston46189195667-1163
11Bristol City461711185351262
12Cardiff CityCardiff46195225370-1762
13Millwall461611194555-1059
14Swansea CitySwansea461512195965-657
15Watford461317166161056
16Sunderland46168225254-256
17Stoke CityStoke461511204960-1156
18Queens Park RangersQPR461511204758-1156
19Blackburn RoversBlackburn461411216074-1453
20Sheffield WednesdaySheff Weds46158234468-2453
21Plymouth ArgylePlymouth461312215970-1151
RBirmingham CityBirmingham461311225065-1550
RHuddersfield TownHuddersfield46918194877-2945
RRotherham UnitedRotherham46512293789-5227


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!