Stoke end losing run with comfortable win at BournemouthStoke put their three-game Premier League losing streak to an end with a confident 3-1 win over a weak Bournemouth side at the Vitality StadiumA first-half goal from Giannelli Imbula and second-half strikes from Ibrahim Afellay and Joselu were enough to secure the visitors all three points and move them up to ninth in the league table.Bournemouth struggled to compete in the game but Matt Ritchie's consolation goal just before the hour mark led to an exciting finish to the game as the Cherries pushed on to try and achieve a much-needed draw.Stoke had lost 3-0 to Leicester, Manchester United and Everton in succession but the home side had a first half to forget and it took Stoke just nine minutes to break through the Cherries' defence.Simon Francis' block fell straight to Imbula and the midfielder hit the ball on the volley straight into the bottom corner of the net, giving Artur Boruc no chance
Bournemouth's defence seemed to lose confidence after the goal and Jonathan Walters could have put the away side 2-0 up before half-time but the ball found the side netting, much to the disappointment of the travelling fans.Howe's men started the second half like a different side but despite a few early chances it was Stoke who found the back of the net again.With only 10 men on the pitch due to an injury to Glen Johnson, Walters took on Harry Arter down the right before passing a beautifully timed ball to the oncoming Afellay, who finished first time.Stoke striker Joselu was brought on to replace Johnson during the celebrations and had only been on the pitch a few minutes before his head met Xherdan Shaqiri's cross to put Stoke 3-0 up.Bournemouth were not going to give up easily and in the 57th minute Ritchie, one of two half-time substitutes, swept home a superb first-time left-foot effort from the edge of the box.It spurred the home side on and they began to trouble the Stoke defence
Ritchie and Junior Stanislas came close to adding a second for Bournemouth but the Potters' defence managed to stop any balls which made their way into the area.There was a tense end to the game as Bournemouth desperately tried to get back into it and referee Graham Scott handed out a number of yellow cards to both sides
Stoke successfully handled the added pressure to secure all three points as the result sees Bournemouth slip to just four points above the relegation zone
TWEET OF THE MATCH"Good win for Stoke against 'The Strawberries' as I thought B'mouth's nickname was! (My clue was 'red fruit' - that was all I could think of)"British middle distance runner Emma Jackson @emmajacko88https://twitter.com/emmajacko88/status/698553975247863809PLAYER RATINGSBOURNEMOUTHArtur Boruc - 5Simon Francis - 5Steve Cook - 5Dan Gosling - 5Andrew Surman - 5Marc Pugh - 5Harry Arter - 5Charlie Daniels - 6Adam Smith - 6Junior Stanislas - 6Benik Afobe - 5SUBSJuan Iturbe - 6Joshua King - 6Matt Ritchie - 7STOKEJack Butland - 6Erik Pieters - 6Marc Muniesa - 6Glenn Whelan - 6Glen Johnson - 6Ibrahim Afellay - 7Mame Biram Diouf - 5Jonathan Walters - 6Giannelli Imbula - 7Xherdan Shaqiri - 6Philipp Wollscheid - 5SUBSStephen Ireland - 5Joselu - 6STAR PLAYERGiannelli Imbula - The 23-year-old midfielder did not stop running and was not afraid to put a tackle in
His first-half goal sent Bournemouth's defence to pieces which they did not fully recover from.MOMENT OF THE MATCHEddie Howe made a double substitution at half-time and it proved to be what Bournemouth needed to compete in the game
The first half was very one-sided but the introduction of Matt Ritchie provided the Cherries with a different style of attack
Ritchie found the back of the net just before the hour mark and whilst Bournemouth still lost the game his presence on the pitch put a fight into the home side making it a much more even game.VIEW FROM THE BENCHGlen Johnson was forced off the pitch after falling awkwardly in the area and Mark Hughes chose to bring striker Joselu on to replace him
It turned out to be a great substitution as only a matter of minutes later Joselu's head found the ball in the area to put the Potters 3-0 up.MOAN OF THE MATCHBournemouth fans were not happy as the first half was drawing to a close Stoke's Marc Muniesa went down with a hamstring injury but the time it took for the Potters' physio team to make it on to help him upset an already frustrated set of Cherries' fans
A number of boos rang out as the referee went down the tunnel at half-time and at the full-time whistle.WHO'S UP NEXT?Bournemouth v Everton (FA Cup, Saturday 20 February).Stoke v Aston Villa (Premier League, Saturday 27 February)
Source : PA
Source: PA