Full Time: Stoke City 1-2 Bournemouth
After a narrow loss to Spurs last weekend, Bournemouth bounced back with a victory away from home as they put two past a helpless Stoke City side, who went down to a 2-1 defeat, dropping into the relegation zone. Andrew Surman opened the scoring for the visitors early in the first half, just two minutes before Junior Stanislas showed his composure from the spot, as the Cherries ran into a 2-0 lead after just 18 minutes.
Mame Diouf’s strike just after the hour mark halved the deficit but that was not enough for the Potters to take anything from this game.
Bournemouth Player Ratings
Asmir Begovic (6)
Did not have too much to do and could not have done much to stop Diouf’s goal in what was a comfortable outing otherwise.
Adam Smith (7)
A constant presence at both ends of the field, Smith managed to keep his composure at the back and also added a number in the attack when needed.
Simon Francis (7)
Stuck to his task well even against the likes of Peter Crouch late in the game but should have kept himself closer to Diouf in the build-up to Stoke’s goal.
Nathan Ake (7)
Lost the header to Chupo-Moting that allowed Diouf on goal but was rather comfortable at the back otherwise.
Charlie Daniels (6)
Though he was not his usual self on the flank, Daniels did well to keep the fluid Stoke attack away from danger on his flank, helping his side hold on to a slender lead late in the game.
Jordon Ibe (6)
The youngster caused a lot of trouble on the flank but inconsistency in the final third meant that he did not create enough for his side to run away with the game.
Lewis Cook (7)
A pillar in the middle of the field, Cook decided to sit back and soak up the pressure and he won the ball back a number of times to keep Stoke under pressure all night.
Andrew Surman (8)
A tremendous performance from the midfielder who managed to dictate the game just in front of the back line and kept his side on the front foot throughout the game.
Junior Stanislas (8)
Apart from the penalty, Stanislas was a constant threat to the Stoke defence as his swift movement and smart passing were too hot to handle at times.
Lys Mousset (7)
In just his third start of the season, Mousset showed enough promise for Howe to stick with him in the upcoming games.
Benik Afobe (7)
Won the penalty just two minutes after Surman’s goal and should have won another one late in the game as he constantly troubled the Stoke backline all game.
Subs:
Steve Cook (6)
Came in with half an hour left to play and slotted in well on the flank, continuing to keep the pressure on the home side.
Harry Arter (6)
Added mettle to the midfield late in the game when Stoke started to push numbers up the field.
Mark Pugh – N/A
Came in too late into the game to warrant a rating.