Jese arrives in style as Welbeck frustrates: The winners and losers from Stoke 1-0 Arsenal
Stoke City recorded a 1-0 win over Arsenal at the Bet 365 Stadium this evening thanks to a debut goal for Jese Rodriguez.
Both sides had contrasting starts to the new Premier League season last week. The Potters lost away at Everton, while the Gunners had to twice come from behind to beat Leicester City at the Emirates Stadium.
Today’s game didn’t match the excitement of
that in north London eight days ago, but it was one that raised serious
questions as to whether Arsene Wenger’s side will be able to mount a
title challenge and eased the pressure on Mark Hughes.
So, who impressed and who struggled?
Well, here’s the winners and losers from City’s 1-0 win over the Gunners…
Winners
Jese
There’s no better way to mark your debut for your new club than with a
goal. Signed on loan from Paris Saint-Germain this week, Jese becomes
the latest Champions League winner to test himself at Stoke City under
Mark Hughes.
Despite having just a few days of training
with his new teammates, the Spaniard was thrown into the thick of things
as Hughes looked to give him a baptism of fire against a side which
looked less than secure defensively eight days ago.
In truth, he was on the fringes of things in the first-half, but he
certainly made a massive impact within seconds of the restart. Walking
on to the ball unchallenged in the penalty area to slide his effort past
Petr Cech and into the corner of the net.
Kurt Zouma
When you look at the state Chelsea have been in since the start of
the season, it makes you wonder why they allowed the Frenchman to join
Stoke on a season-long loan deal. As it is, their loss is the Potters’
gain and he impressed against the Gunners.
Once the home side got their noses in
front, it was always going to be a backs against the wall job for their
defence. None stood taller, none defended better than Zouma and he as as
key as anybody in securing a clean sheet.
Jack Butland
A future England number one, there’s little doubt about that. Injured
for the majority of last season allowed the likes of Jordan Pickford,
Tom Heaton and Fraser Forster to nip ahead of him in the race to replace
Joe Hart in between the sticks.
He’s back now and looks ready to stake his claim to at least be on the plane to Russia next summer.
Aaron Ramsey
As the Gunners struggled to break down Stoke in the opening period, the most likely source of a goal was the Welshman. Restored to the starting XI following a goalscoring cameo appearance against Leicester City last week, Ramsey looked fresh.
Appearing to be unbothered by the boos of
the home supporters – even though it was him who suffered that horrific
leg break back in 2010 – and on an evening where almost nothing went
right for the Gunners he was arguably their best player.
Losers
Erik Pieters
For 80+ minutes the Dutchman was given the run-a-round by Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and it was noticeable that most of Arsenal’s most promising attacks came down his side as it took him until the 81st minute to win his first tackle of the afternoon.Nacho Monreal
The Spaniard looked impressive playing on the left of a back three towards the end of last season, but playing in the middle simply doesn’t suit him. His flaws were highlighted against Leicester City and were on show once again today.
Why Arsene Wenger opted to continue with
Monreal in this position despite the fact he as Per Mertesacker
available will remain a mystery, but it should really be the last time
it happens. After electing to play the ball out so Mame Diouf – already
on his feet – could receive treatment – it went downhill.
Minutes after the restart, he was at fault for Stoke’s opener. Caught sleeping as Jese strode on to Sadio Berahino’s pass and that turned out to be the all-important moment of a game with very few chances.
Minutes after the restart, he was at fault for Stoke’s opener. Caught sleeping as Jese strode on to Sadio Berahino’s pass and that turned out to be the all-important moment of a game with very few chances.
Granit Xhaka
Not the best outing for the Swiss international. Passing was way off the mark and he was once again at fault for the concession of a goal. He got out of jail for being sloppy in possession against the Foxes last week by registering two assists, but today there was no reprieve.
He gave the ball away in poor position,
then failed to show enough aggression to win the ball back in midfield
and then a few moments later Stoke were celebrating Jese’s goal –
meaning he’s now been directly at fault for 3 of the 5 goals Arsenal
have conceded this season.
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