Arsenal’s solid performance v Stoke shows there is life in the old dog

Arsenal’s solid performance v Stoke shows there is life in the old dog

Arsenal kept the fight for a top-four finish and Champions League football alive with a 4-1 victory away at Stoke City yesterday, a ground where the Gunners have consistently fallen short in recent years.

Arsene Wenger’s side had managed just one win in Staffordshire since the Potters were promoted to the Premier League, with their sole victory coming in 2010, but a fluid performance yesterday shattered that record and gave Arsenal a crucial three points.


The most impressive aspect of the victory was certainly the performance from Arsenal, as this was far from a result that the North London outfit ground out as the Gunners were dominating the play from start to finish.

Olivier Giroud’s first-half goal was swiftly doubled by Mesut Ozil after the interval, a player who many expected to struggle in the physical nature of the play, and the Gunners showed resilience to fight back after Peter Crouch’s controversial handball goal.

An Arsenal side of old may have crumbled when Crouch’s goal went in, particularly with it being an awful decision from the referee, but Wenger’s men immediately got their quest for three points back on track and finished with a flattering result.

For Arsenal, it was the first time they have scored more than three goals in a Premier League tie since a comfortable victory over Swansea City in January, whilst the hefty defeat was also a rare black mark on Stoke- standing as the first time Stoke have conceded four goals in a Premier League game since losing 4-0 to Tottenham Hotspur way back in September.

Arsene Wenger’s comments after the game were spot on, as he talked up the possibility of squeezing into the top-four having put pressure on Liverpool ahead of the Reds’ trip to face West Ham at the London Stadium tomorrow.

“We had a difficult week but we’ve won convincingly so the focus is there, the fighting spirit is there and we’re pleased to win. I believe when the team plays well we have the right individual talent to win.”

“When they scored the ‘hand-goal’ they came back but when you go to places like Stoke you need at some stage to suffer and stick together and that’s what we did. When we went 3-1 up that was game over.”

Arsenal cut Liverpool’s advantage to just one point with yesterday’s win and the Gunners have the opportunity to leapfrog Jurgen Klopp’s side and move into the top-four in the midweek clash with already-relegated Sunderland, if Liverpool drop points to West Ham tomorrow.

The Gunners campaign has certainly been disappointing overall but the performance yesterday has shown there is still life in the old dog yet and it’s not too bad of a campaign to be having if it’s to go down as their worst in two decades.