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Stoke gained some revenge after their thrashing by Arsenal at home at the end of last season with a surprising 1-0 victory over the North London side.
Arsenal had many chances to take the lead in the first half and were denied two potential penalties with a foul on Hector Bellerin and a handball. However, it was Stoke who would take the lead early in the second half through their new loan signing Jese Rodriguez, as his low left footed strike made its way past Petr Cech.
Arsenal were then denied an equaliser as Alexandre Lacazette found himself marginally offside after he rifled home a left-footed strike inside the box. Another penalty shout was ignored in the second half as another handball was waved away.
This makes a disappointing second game of the season for Arsenal as this time they weren’t able to escape defeat like they did at home to Leicester City. On the other hand, Stoke will be delighted to have beaten a top side at the Bet365 stadium to get their first three points on the board.
Here we look at the player ratings from today’s game. (All the ratings are out of 10)
Stoke City
Jack Butland – 8
An incredible save from an oncoming Ramsey kept the score line 0-0 in the first half and he continued to make a good contribution and good saves all game.
Mame Biram Diouf – 5
He allowed both Welbeck and Bellerin to find themselves in dangerous positions on too many occasions and was lucky not to be at fault for a first half Arsenal goal.
Kurt Zouma – 8
The Chelsea loanee defended extremely well, cutting out so many of Arsenal’s attacks and timed his last ditch tackles to perfection on numerous occasions. It was an excellent performance from the young central defender.
Ryan Shawcross - 6
Defended well but was finding it difficult to deal with midfield runs from Welbeck and Ramsey at times.
Geoff Cameron – 7
Did well on the left side of the back three and kept Chamberlain from getting into Stoke’s box.
Erik Pieters – 7
Defended very well and stood strong to deny Chamberlain few chances of getting past him going forward.
Darren Fletcher – 5
The veteran midfielder struggled to deal with the fluidity of Arsenal’s midfield and allowed Ramsey to make many late runs into the box. He put in a good defensive shift but it certainly wasn’t a very good performance.
Joe Allen – 6
Looked to help Stoke break on the counter but found it hard to deal with Ramsey and Xhaka with their creativeness just outside the box. His job going forward became less important in the second half as Stoke sat so deep.
Xherdan Shaqiri – N/A
Was forced off early through injury and replaced by Englishman Berahino.
Jese Rodriguez – 7
He was handed his Stoke debut and looked to be non-existent for the whole of the first half. However, early in the second half a good in behind Arsenal’s defence and a superb left footed finish gave Stoke the lead.
Maxim Choupo-Moting – 6
Stoke’s new signing made some intelligent early runs and gave Arsenal’s defence a nervy start, but soon after they had the striker under control. He put in a strong shift but didn’t look particularly threatening.
Substitutions:
Saido Berahino – 6
It’s always hard coming on for an injured player in the first half and that proved as he made minimal impact. Became much more of a threat in the second half as Stoke looked to counter attack with Arsenal controlling the ball.
Ramadan Sobhi – N/A
The Egyptian could not make much of an impact with Stoke defending so deep but put in a focused performance when coming off the bench to deny Arsenal a goal.
Bruno Martins Indi – N/A
Coming on with just a minute to play he concentrated and defended well but it was not much of an important part of Stoke’s performance.
Arsenal
Petr Cech – 6
Made a good save early in the game to deny Choupo-Moting and scrambled out to try and deny Jese but was unfortunate to allow Stoke to score. He did not have a whole lot to do as Arsenal dominated possession and the chances.
Hector Bellerin – 7
In a slightly unnatural LWB role, he looked extremely comfortable and threatened in behind and in Stoke’s box numerous times.
Shkodran Mustafi – 6
In his first game this season the German looked comfortable but could not avoid Arsenal conceding early in the second half.
Nacho Monreal – 6
The Spaniard is certainly growing into his new CB role but it would seem he’s more suited to playing on the left side of a three. Could have potentially got tighter to Jese for the goal but wasn’t the main man at fault.
Sead Kolasinac – 6
The Bosnian made less marauding runs forward, in comparison to the Leicester game, and defended well throughout the first half minimising Stoke’s threat. It was not perhaps his best game but he defended well for the most part.
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain – 6
Oxlade-Chamberlain usually makes more direct runs at the opposite full back but came unstuck the majority of the time as Pieters defended well.
Granit Xhaka – 5
His passing, as usual, was spot on as he sprayed the ball from side to side with ease. However, a silly decision to chase down a misplaced pass cost his team and allowed Stoke to take the lead.
Aaron Ramsey – 7
As he has earned a regular spot in the team he has become the Ramsey of old. His runs from deep are crucial and he’s an extremely dangerous part of Arsenal’s attack.
Danny Welbeck – 7
His intelligent movement and runs in behind gave Stoke’s defence lots of problems and he was unlucky not to score. His finishing may need improving to gain a regular place in Arsenal’s starting 11. Overall the Englishman put in a great performance.
Mesut Ozil – 6
Quite typically of Ozil he didn’t look to be involved too often but still produced some magic on occasions as he created chances for his team-mates. Came into life more in the second half as he twisted and turned away from Stoke’s midfielders.
Alexandre Lacazette – 7
He may not have been involved as much as he would have liked but the Frenchman’s link up play looks to be very good and suits Arsenal’s way of playing. Denied Arsenal’s equaliser after a great strike when the replays proved he was the tiniest bit offside.
Substitutions:
Olivier Giroud – 6
The Frenchman seemed to struggle to gain a foot hold in the match after being brought on and could not make an impact like he did against Leicester.
Alex Iwobi – N/A
Replaced Granit Xhaka with 12 minutes to play and tried his best but couldn’t really get into the swing of things.
Theo Walcott – N/A
Replaced Lacazette at the same time as Iwobi’s arrival and his name was barely mentioned.
