Stoke City fell to a disappointing 1-0 loss at home to promotion rivals Bournemouth last night.

Michael O'Neill's men have been outstanding at the Bet365 Stadium this season, however a Dominic Solanke goal, after an error from keeper Adam Davies, was enough to condemn the Potters to their first league defeat on their own patch.

The result, which made it back-to-back defeats, has seen Stoke drop down to sixth in the table and they could end up outside the play-off places depending on how other sides around them get on this evening.

So, O'Neill will be demanding improvements moving forward and here we look at THREE things we learnt about his side following the Bournemouth clash...

They can compete with any team in this league

Firstly, a positive, as it should be noted that it was a very even game last night and it was ultimately decided by an individual mistake.

With the Cherries top of the league and unbeaten, that shows that Stoke don't have anything to fear in this league.

Scott Parker's men were playing for time after taking the lead, which proves they realised what a threat the hosts posed.

Nick Powell needs to stay fit

Losing Powell to injury in the first-half was a major blow for Stoke and his absence was felt.

In total, Stoke had just two shots on target from 13 attempts, so there was a real lack of quality in the final third in terms of delivering that final pass and showing composure in front of goal.

Powell helps on that front and whilst Stoke have a good squad, the former Manchester United man is a key man.

They must score more goals

Following on from that, Stoke ended up failing to score and it continues their struggles in front of goal.

A return of 16 in 13 games isn't disastrous, but only Millwall have netted fewer in the top half, which shows it's a problem that needs to be addressed.

Tyrese Campbell coming back into the XI will help on that front but there shouldn't be too much pressure on the youngster.