Pro Sports

Pressure on Hughes as West Ham beats Stoke 3-0

Posted December 16, 2017 6:00 am

The Associated Press

West Ham United's Mark Noble celebrates scoring his side's first goal of the game, during the English Premier League soccer match between Stoke City and West Ham United at the bet365 Stadium in Stoke, England, Saturday Dec. 16, 2017. (Mike Egerton/PA via AP) The Associated Press

STOKE, England (AP) - Stoke slumped to a fifth Premier League defeat in six games with West Ham's Marko Arnautovic scoring against his old club in a 3-0 win on Saturday.

Kickoff had been delayed by an hour due to a power cut. Once the match started, David Moyes' West Ham was sent on its way by a controversially awarded Mark Noble penalty in the 19th minute, which could result in retrospective punishment for Manuel Lanzini after he appeared to dive.

Stoke manager Mark Hughes faced chants of "Sacked (fired) in the morning" and "Hughes out."

Hughes' mood worsened with second-half goals from Arnautovic and substitute Diafra Sakho.

Arnautovic was jeered throughout the game after forcing a summer move to the Hammers, which moved above the Potters in the table with this win. West Ham rose to 15th and Stoke dropped to 17th.

Stoke chairman Peter Coates had identified this fixture and last Tuesday's game with Burnley as pivotal and Hughes's position may now be precarious after two defeats.

A sign things could go wrong for Stoke arrived around an hour before kickoff when power was lost.

It remained out for almost an hour, delaying kickoff and leaving thousands of fans outside the bet365 stadium because the turnstiles could not be operated.

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AP Premier League coverage: www.apnews.com/tag/PremierLeague

Fans stand outside bet365 Stadium in Stoke, England, due to a power cut ahead of the English Premier League soccer match between Stoke City and West Ham United on Saturday Dec. 16, 2017. (Mike Egerton/PA via AP) The Associated Press

West Ham United's Mark Noble scores his side's first goal of the game during the English Premier League soccer match between Stoke City and West Ham United at the bet365 Stadium in Stoke, England, Saturday Dec. 16, 2017. (Mike Egerton/PA via AP) The Associated Press

Stoke City's Mame Biram Diouf, left and West Ham United's Pedro Obiang battle for the ball during the English Premier League soccer match between Stoke City and West Ham United at the bet365 Stadium in Stoke, England, Saturday Dec. 16, 2017. (Mike Egerton/PA via AP) The Associated Press

Stoke City manager Mark Hughes appears dejected on the touchline, during the English Premier League soccer match between Stoke City and West Ham United at the bet365 Stadium in Stoke, England, Saturday Dec. 16, 2017. (Mike Egerton/PA via AP) The Associated Press

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