Stoke City finished ninth in the Premier League after a 2-1 win on the final day of the season away to West Bromwich Albion this afternoon.
Gareth McAuley's first-half own goal gave the Potters the lead, before Stephane Sessegnon equalised after the break with a close-range finish.
With three minutes of normal time remaining Charlie Adam scored a long-range effort to give Mark Hughes's side the victory at The Hawthorns.
Below, Sports Mole takes a closer look at the key talking points from the match.
Match statistics
West Brom
Shots: 17
On target: 4
Possession: 43
Corners: 11
Fouls: 4
Stoke City
Shots: 15
On target: 4
Possession: 57
Corners: 6
Fouls: 7
Was the result fair?
On reflection, you would have to say yes. Stoke had the better of the first half, and while the Baggies rallied with one or two chances in the second half, Mark Hughes's side deserved the victory.
West Brom's performance
The Baggies struggled to carve out many real openings in the first period, but should have scored very early on. The introduction of Victor Anichebe coupled with Stephane Sessegnon and Saido Berahino's improvements gave the home side a better look in the second half. However, a draw would have flattered them somewhat.
Stoke's performance
Marko Arnautovic was in and out with one or two moments of class, while Jonathan Walters was typically enthusiastic, but overall, the Potters did enough to see them leapfrog Newcastle into ninth. Mark Hughes should be highly commended for overseeing a culture change and managing a top-half finish from his charges.
Sports Mole's man of the match
Marko Arnautovic: It was difficult to pick one outstanding performer out, but Arnautovic was chief tormentor for the Potters for most of the afternoon. One or two things he tried failed, but he was always offering himself to his teammates, and picked out some lovely passes, both long and short.
Biggest gaffe
Ben Foster had a couple of howlers in the second half with his distribution, the worst of those was when he tried to start a quick attack but contrived to concede a corner by throwing the ball out. He saw the funny side even if Pepe Mel didn't!
Referee performance
Lee Probert treated the game like a pre-season friendly. He declined to book a number of players for some tasty looking challenges, and Gareth McAuley remarkably escaped censure for a crude-looking tackle on Peter Odemwingie in the first half.
What next?
West Brom: A new manager? Speculation over Pepe Mel continues to swirl around the Spaniard, and he could be relieved of his duties in the close season. Other than that, a holiday beckons for all concerned before they return for pre-season training.
Stoke: Mark Hughes will depart for his summer holidays content with his season's work. A ninth-placed finish is a great achievement in his first season. The players deserve credit too for their adaptation to life after Tony Pulis. A successful season all in all for the Potters.
Paul Gorst
