Player Ratings – Arsenal
Jack Butland – 9 – MOTM
A top class performance showing everyone exactly why he is England’s number one. Hard to believe how quick he was of his line and diving in front of everything making himself big and strong. Was a little fortunate to get away with one near post save that slipped away from him but other than that a faultless performance.
Mame Diouf – 6
Decided to give Diouf a low rating as he came far too close to losing the game for us. Should have gave away a penalty for a silly challenge on Bellerin then was also lucky not to give away another late in the second half. He did make good progress down the wing but lacked the final ball, committed himself in challenges far too much, goes to show that we must sign an actual right wing-back and not use a player we signed as a striker.
Ryan Shawcross – 6.5
From a defensive point of view he did what he needed to do in making his fair share of tackles and blockings but when he had the ball at his feet he always opted to launch it up field straight back to Arsenal which allowed them to keep coming at us. Should have had a header on target in the first half and was lucky to get away with an error in communication with Butland.
Geoff Cameron – 7
Surprised to see him play over Bruno but was calm with possession and put a good defensive shift in putting any questions over him starting to bed.
Kurt Zouma – 9
Definitely between Kurt and Jack for MOTM. He has to be one of the best players around when it comes to sliding tackles of the ball I’ve ever seen, every time he goes to ground for the ball he gets it and times it to perfection. Quality performance.
Erik Pieters – 6
Did what needed to be done defensively and actually put in a lovely cross for Berahino for once but when having the ball at his feet it was painful to watch, sloppy passing caused loss of possession multiple times and when running with the ball he over hit it time and time again which eventually ended with him being chopped down unlawfully by Mustafi.
Joe Allen – 6
Starting the think rejecting that Swansea bid was a bit silly, today he was the poorest player on the pitch. As always he worked hard and covered a lot of ground but upon actually getting the ball he misplaced a ridiculous amount of passes, found it far too difficult to actually keep the ball which isn’t ideal when you’re defending a 1-0 lead.
Darren Fletcher – 8
The much better of the midfield pairing today, so calm on the ball and his passing was neat and tidy. Looks like a solid leader in the centre of the field and even helped create a couple of chances.
Xherdan Shaqiri – N/A
Such a shame he got injured, looked lively and wanted to get the ball at his feet and drive forward, really do hope it’s nothing serious.
Maxim Choupo Moting – 8
Worked so hard considering this is his first full 90 minutes in ages. Could have done better when Jese pulled when back but Choupo could only knock it into Cech’s hands. Made good progress down the wing and put in some decent balls to, understandably tired towards the end.
Jese Rodriguez – 8
Wasted no time at all making his mark. Made so quality runs forward and showed his skill throughout. Took his goal so well with a nice calm finish and another one who understandably got tired.
Sadio Berahino – 8
Just as I was starting to lose hope of Berahino doing anything in a Stoke shirt he puts in his best performance to date. Worked so hard and never stopped running, was unlucky with his header that he anticipated so well and played a big part in the goal getting the assist. Looking forward to seeing what confidence this brings him, especially with next weeks game being against his former side.
Ramadan Sobhi – 5
I was looking forward to seeing what his fresh legs could do but was a let down in the twenty minutes he had to impress. He did what he needed to do when tracking back but going forward he ran in to trouble the tried to be a little too clever and gave the ball away dangerously. Expected a little more.
Bruno Martins Indi – N/A
Came on for the injured Pieters. Wasn’t forced into doing anything major.
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