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Premier League Team Report Cards

By Rucker Haringey

Jul 29, 2015; Chicago, IL, USA; Manchester United forward Wayne Rooney (10) kicks the ball against the Paris Saint-Germain during the second half at Soldier Field. Paris Saint-Germain defeats Manchester United 2-0. Mandatory Credit: Mike DiNovo-USA TODAY Sports
Jul 29, 2015; Chicago, IL, USA; Manchester United forward Wayne Rooney (10) kicks the ball against the Paris Saint-Germain during the second half at Soldier Field. Paris Saint-Germain defeats Manchester United 2-0. Mandatory Credit: Mike DiNovo-USA TODAY Sports /
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Just proof that someone actually went from Bayern to Stoke City voluntarily in a span of several years. Mandatory Credit: Craig Mitchelldyer-USA TODAY Sports
Just proof that someone actually went from Bayern to Stoke City voluntarily in a span of several years. Mandatory Credit: Craig Mitchelldyer-USA TODAY Sports /

Stoke City-A

I’m tempted to take this entire space just to talk about how dominant Jack Butland has been in-goal through 12 games. If you were picking the England team entirely on merit then Butland would be a lock to start over Joe Hart. He has kept Stoke City in match after match this year by denying opponents point-blank scoring opportunities. He’s worth tuning in just to see what he’ll do next. If we were grading just goal keeping he would get an A with about 100 pluses.

Unfortunately for Stoke, the game is played on both ends of the pitch. As good as Butland has been in-goal, their offense has been well…poor. Xherdan Shaqiri, Marko Arnautovic, Bojan and company have been inconsistent at best. If they could provide just average offense then Stoke could challenge for a top eight finish. Sadly, their offensive ineptitude drags down the brilliance of Butland and Ryan Shawcross into just a pedestrian A. Still a solid mark for Stoke through 12 matches.

Next: How high can your marks be if your star striker gives up?

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