Stoke City’s unbeaten record at the Britannia Stadium stayed in tact as Fulham left the Potteries for London without gaining any points. Both teams spurned chances, but Charlie Adam scored his second goal in three games for Stoke, as his team moved into 11th with a 1-0 win.
Asmir Begovic -Had little to do throughout the game but did well when called upon, keeping his concentration late on when Dimitar Berbatov tested him. 7
Ryan Shotton – He was a threat down the right linking up with Jonathon Walters, delivering the cross that lead to Stoke’s goal, and had better consistency in the wide area than in past games. 7
Ryan Shawcross- Demanding, strong and confident at the back, timing his tackles well, and coping well with Berbatov. Should have made it 2-0 hitting the bar with a powerful header from close range and squandered another chance in the second half. 8
Robert Huth – Should have opened the scoring after 15 minutes, heading wide with a free header, but was commanding at the back keeping Mladen Petric quiet. 7
Geoff Cameron – A solid display, switching sides to the left from previous games, had more to do when Damien Duff came on. 7
Jonathon Walters – Kept running for the full 90 minutes and did well to last the full game, but lacked that real touch of quality. 6
Mathew Etherington – Stoke fans will have been happy to see the winger running at defenders again and looked like a real threat down the left, delivering crosses into dangerous areas. 7
Steven N’Zonzi – Looked calm on the ball and played his part in the goal on the right hand side with Shotton and in the disallowed goal. A real presence. 7
Glenn Whelan – Determined in the middle and some good challenges, but did spurn a chance, clearing the bar with a very good opportunity. 7
Charlie Adam – Scored the only goal of the game in the 26th minute, getting on the end of Peter Crouch’s knock down in the in the middle of the six yard box. Had other chances but couldn’t convert. 7
Peter Crouch – Had one over Phillipe Senderos all game and out jumped the defender to win the knock down for the goal, good in the air throughout the game. 7
Subs
Kenwyne Jones – Had a goal disallowed in stoppage time for offside after failing to hold his run long enough, but good finish. 6
Dean Whitehead – Closed down well but made little impact on the team going forward. 6
Michael Kightly – Came on to take over from Etherington, but spent most of the time in his own half. 6
Fulham
Mark Schwarzer – Handled the high ball and the conditions pretty well, had no part to play in the goal, but was beaten to the ball by Shawcross when he rattled the bar. 6
Sascha Riether – Worked hard in defence, got forward on occasions and looked lively when he did. 7
Philippe Senderos- Had a difficult afternoon up against Crouch, with the Englishmen beating him in the air for the knockdown leading to the goal. Booked early on for blocking Etherington after he had been beaten out wide. 5
Aaron Hughes – Dealt with a difficult afternoon quite well going up against Crouch, but missed his defensive partner and captain Brede Hangeland. 6
John Arne Riise – Had a decent game, but the Norwegian had to deal with Shotton overlapping Walters and did get outnumbered for the goal. 6
Chris Baird – Played in midfield and had a solid game. 6
Steven Sidwell – Was the man marking Adam for the goal, but left the Scotsman alone to guard the goal line, which turned out to be fatal misjudgment. Worked hard in the middle though. 6
Giorgos Karagounis – Had an early effort that he pulled wide of Begovic’s post and after that he turned into a passenger in the middle of midfield. 5
Ashkan Dejagah – Posed the odd threat, but never got the upper hand over the Stoke defence. 5
Dimitar Berbatov – Most positove moves came through the Bulgarian, but he had to drop deeper and deeper to try and effect the game, making it easier for the Stoke back line. Did have a late chance and stung Begovic’s hands. 7
Mladen Petric – Had little impact on the game, creating less than a handle full of attempts. 5
Subs
Damien Duff – Came on in the last 15 minutes and looked lively when given the chance, would have been better coming on earlier for the Cottagers. Did a lot more than Karagounis 7
Hugo Rodallega – Created chances when brought on for the last 10 minutes. 6
