West Ham fought back from 2-0 down (Picture: Getty)

West Ham may have dropped from fourth in the table to fifth and seen their three-game winning streak come to an end at Stoke, but the point they earned was arguably the most important one of the 17 they have accumulated so far this season.

The Britannia Stadium is such a daunting venue and a graveyard of ambition that it has become embodied in footballing parlance – ‘but can he do it on a cold night at Stoke?’ being regarded as the ultimate litmus test of a perceived fancy dan player. So it should be a source of real pride for Sam Allardyce’s team that they came through their toughest scrutiny of the season so far in such battling style.



Yes they took a battering at the hands of a famously tough side. Yes they were dominated in possession, and yes they managed just two shots on target as opposed to Stoke’s six. But vitally both those efforts went in, and they came from two goals down to earn a draw that in years gone by would have been beyond this side.

The wins over bottom pair QPR and Burnley were enjoyable, and the victory over reigning champions Manchester City was thrilling, but away at Stoke – maybe not on a cold night, but hardly a hot afternoon – is where a team’s mettle and character are really held up to the light.


When Mame Diouf’s near-post header was added to Victor Moses’s scrambled effort early in the second half, the Irons looked to be up against it. But crucially, within minutes, Enner Valencia – who is looking to be one of the steals of the summer – added to the team’s fine haul of headed goals with a low effort set up by Stewart Downing, and then the former Liverpool man tied things up with a shot of his own.

Should the hosts have won the game? Probably – they dominated, but fortunately James Collins and Adrian both produced top-drawer performances to ensure that they didn’t. And that is all West Ham will care about.

Last season the crowd were frequently on the team’s back, and it showed. This term, they know they have the fans fully behind them, with similarly visible results. Fifth after 10 games is way beyond anyone’s expectations, and with an Aston Villa side who at the time of writing have not scored in five matches up next, West Ham should have every reason to think that they can stay up near the right end of the table, and not worry about looking down, as they had to all too often last term.

Of course there is far to go, so rash predictions are pointless and ill-advised, but already, what is certain is that this West Ham side is showing more backbone and steel, and the potential to outperform any that the club has produced in years.



And nothing proves that quite as much as this comeback at Stoke.

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