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Marko Arnautovic
Signed for a fee of just £2 million this summer, Marko Arnautovic’s move to Stoke City is a big opportunity for the Austrian international to turn a new leaf. It will be his third leaf in three years.
The former FC Twente, Inter and Werder Bremen forward has had a well-chronicled past of controversy and antics that unsurprisingly intertwine with those of Mario Balotelli from the one year they spent together in Italy.
However, the Britannia Stadium could be the scene of Arnautovic coming full circle and finally moving past the immaturity that’s blighted so much of his career to this point following a promising start to life as a Potter.
As a deadline day signing, it’s taken the attacker not very long to settle into Mark Hughes’ squad, but with five starts in in his last five matches, he’s quickly clocked up some decent Premier League experience.
Arnautovic has the added benefit of bringing something to Stoke that the club didn’t have before. It’s no secret that Hughes is attempting to step away from the defensive attitude built up during Tony Pulis’ time at the club and it’s this summer recruit in particular who will be a jumping-off point in that pursuit.
Marko Arnautovic Action Areas v StokeArnautovic couldn’t have asked for a finer way to score his first Premier League goal, rasping a 25-yard free-kick past David de Gea at Old Trafford last weekend. The only thing better being the Austrian’s sombre reaction to such a glorious opening of his English account.
Marko Arnautovic Take-Ons v Man UnitedThat’s not to say Arnautovic’s outing against Manchester United was flash-in-the-pan. Though withdrawn just three minutes into the second half in that game, the player managed to win all three of his attempted take-ons and found the intended target with 11 of his 14 passes.
What is slightly surprising, but at the same time encouraging for Stoke fans, is the abundance of discipline Arnautovic has shown in his early Premier League endeavours. At Werder Bremen last season, he racked up a petulant nine yellow cards and one red offence.
There’s still plenty of time for that to change, though.
Marko Arnautovic Tackles v ArsenalArnautovic’s other standout display this term came in his first Stoke City start, a big away game at Arsenal, but this was more evidence that he isn’t afraid of turning up against the big boys.
In North London, Arnautovic yet again did a terrific job of tracking back and helping his left-back, recording five successful tackles, four of which came near his own corner flag.
From this, we can gather that the 24-year-old isn’t your average winger, and it only helps more that Hughes has the option of fielding the journeyman as a striker.
In what would appear to be a similar circumstance with Jordan Henderson at Liverpool, Arnautovic’s adapting to a family life would appear to have been a great boon in terms of his playing maturity, and Stoke City supporters can only pray that the worst is behind, with nothing but clear skies ahead.
