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It was a night of upsets in the English Premier League, and Arsenal followed the script perfectly by conceding three first-half goals. They got off to the worst possible start, after Peter Crouch put the finishing touch to Steven N’zonzi’s cross as early as in the 19th second of the match.
The visitors’ defence was in a state of disarray, and the lack of order was reminiscent of the day last season when they allowed Liverpool a 5-1 victory over them. Bojan Krkic maneouvred a Jonathan Walters cross into Arsenal’s net on the 35 minute mark, and it was Walters who blasted in a shot to make the score 3-0 before the half-time whistle was blown.
Bojan Krkic scored again in the second half, but the goal was disallowed because Mame Biram Diouf was considered to be interfering with play from an offside position.
Arsenal showed a lot of intent in the second half. Santi Cazorla scored from the spot and Aaron Ramsey executed an accurately placed volley from a corner to reduce the deficit to one goal.
Three goals were always going to be a mountain to climb, and after Calum Chambers was shown a second yellow card in the 78th minute, Arsenal lost the firepower required to complete an unlikely comeback.
Arsenal would have gone among the top 4 had they managed to win the match at Britannia Stadium, and currently remain on 6th spot with several teams within a few points on either side.
Stoke City 1-0 Arsenal: Crouch (1’)
Stoke City 2-0 Arsenal: Bojan (35’)
Stoke City 3-2 Arsenal: Ramsey (70’)
