A new season, the same old Arsenal!
Arsenal suffered their first league defeat this season in typical Arsenal style. Plenty of possession but nothing to show for at the end of 90 minutes. A Jese strike, two minutes into the second half is all it took for Stoke to take all three points and give their boss Mark Hughes a personal victory over Arsene Wenger, his first against the Frenchman in his managerial career.
Arsenal, however, managed to put the ball in the back of the Stoke net; but it was ruled offside as replays showed Lacazette off by a matter of a few inches. Nonetheless, Arsene has a lot of work to be done as we get accustomed to any breathtaking season of Premier League football.
Here are the Arsenal players’ ratings vs Stoke City:
Petr Cech: 6/10
Hard to blame him for the Stoke goal. Did his best to narrow the angle but was beaten by a composed far post finish by Jese. Didn’t have much to do on the night.
Shkodran Mustafi: 5/10
Allowed Berahino to run at him, ultimately leading to the killer pass for Stoke’s goal. One-third of Arsenal’s unconvincing back-three on the night.
Nacho Monreal: 5/10
His split-second hesitation gave Jese just enough room to get his shot on goal. Is not a natural centre-back and that was very much on display on the night.
Kolasinac: Â 5/10
Why does Arsene Wenger see it fit to start a left-back at centre back? Answers on a postcard, please. Gave way to Olivier Giroud in hope for an Arsenal comeback. Sadly, it wasn’t to be.
Oxlade Chamberlain: 6/10
Was industrious down the right wing but he did frustrate quite a lot. He dispossessed Bellerin from the RWB role and performed much better than the Spaniard.
Xhaka: 4/10
Poor and loose passing were a feature of his play on the night. His loose pass for Ozil lead to Stoke scoring on the break. He really needs to work on a lot and start to prove his worth in an Arsenal shirt.
Ramsey: 6/10
A lone spark on the night. He was regularly looking up for runners off the ball and went on quite a few dribbles himself.
Bellerin: 5/10
He was up against a forward-turned-wingback in the form of Diouf. Much more was expected from him on the night especially against the Senegalese, but it was not to be.
Ozil: 5/10
Uninterested, dispassionate and lethargic. What does he have to do to not start a game?
Welbeck: 6.5/10
The best of the front three; but his finishing deserted him on the night. Should have done better with the chances he had.
Lacazette: 5/10
Much was expected from Arsenal’s summer signing but he too failed to make a mark. Some poor first touches on the night as well.
Substitutes:
Olivier Giroud: 6/10
Looked lively when brought on by Arsene Wenger and provided Arsenal with more stability on the ball. Glanced an effort on goal just wide in the dying minutes of the game.
Walcott: 5/10
Came on at a time when Stoke had 11 men behind the ball.
Iwobi: 5/10
Same as Walcott, couldn’t influence proceedings as he would have liked it. But can expect to start the next game as Arsene will likely drop some names to the bench.
