Stalemate at the Britannia

Stoke 0-0 Arsenal

Arsenal returned to the top of the league on Sunday night with a hard fought 0-0 draw away to Stoke. However at the final whistle the Gunners once again couldn’t help feeling frustrated.

Arsene Wenger’s side have a terrible record at the Britannia stadium having only won there on one occasion in Premier League history.

In previous years the aggressive tactics of Tony Pulis saw Arsenal bullied into submission time and time again. However Stoke have changed their style of play under Mark Hughes and in the build up to this game the suggestion from the media was that Stoke would not be as aggressive as they once were. Yet Hughes rubbished those claims and insisted Arsenal would not have an easy ride. And so it proved.

Stoke didn’t bully the Gunners on Sunday, but did illicit gamesmanship in a different form. Every time an Arsenal player threatened to go past a number of Stoke players and start a dangerous attack, a Stoke player would take him out with a subtle trip or block. Although the referee did spot the foul on a number of occasions, he didn’t issue a yellow card at any point and therefore simply gave the home side the freedom to continue with these tactics. In fact as early as the very first minute of the game, Theo Walcott was blocked by the Stoke right back, who didn’t even look at the ball before blocking the Englishman. In a sign of things to come, the referee gave the foul but didn’t issue the yellow card. Had he done so at such an early stage, the message would have been sent that the referee was not going to allow Stoke to ruin the game. After all, the referee’s job is to protect the game.

However Arsenal didn’t help themselves either. The Gunners passing in the final third left a lot to be desired and as a result a number of promising attacks broke down before the away side could build up any pressure. As a result, Stoke found it relatively easy to defend against the Arsenal attack with Wenger’s men only really creating two clear goal scoring opportunities throughout the entire game, one in either half. The first chance arrived as a result of an excellent through ball from Joel Campbell, which is fast becoming the Costa Rican’s speciality. The pass from Campbell saw Giroud get in behind the Stoke defence but as the Frenchman lined up a curling shot into the far corner of the goal, Stoke goalkeeper Butland made a fine save to deny him.

Arsenal’s second gilt edged chance of the game arrived through a set piece. Ordinarily the Gunners wouldn’t be expected to trouble Stoke from a corner, but Giroud managed to evade his marker and connect well with the corner delivery. Unfortunately, the Frenchman’s powerful low header was again well saved by Butland, who had the luxury of having a clear sight on the header, when normally the goalkeeper would see such an effort late, due to the crowded penalty area, making the chance of saving the effort all the more remote.

Although those affiliated to the Gunners could feel frustrated at the final whistle, in fact Stoke also had two gilt edged opportunities of their own to seal all three points. The first chance saw a long range effort from Arnautovic well saved by Petr Cech, but his parry to the side of the goal was picked up by Bojan who seemed destined to score. Fortunately in the time it took the former Barcelona man to get to the ball and steer it goal wards, Cech got back to his feet and managed to deny Bojan.

Had Stoke converted that opportunity, Arsenal would have found it very difficult to get back into the game, especially with such few forward options to choose from on the bench, with Ozil also ruled out for this match with what was described as a minor foot injury and Alexis Sanchez still yet to make his comeback from injury. Had the home side scored from their second big opportunity of the game however, it would have been far too late for Arsenal to do anything about it. With the game entering the final minutes, a Stoke corner delivery saw the ball steered goal wards, evading Cech and seemingly destined for the back of the net. Fortunately for the Gunners, Aaron Ramsey had other ideas and his goal line clearance ensured the score remained goalless before Cech did well so save from the rebound, using his foot to divert the ball away from goal.

In the end therefore, neither side could really complain at the result. The frustration for Arsenal came from the fact that they know they can play far better. Their passing game on Sunday was just not up to scratch and let them down badly. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain was a serial offender in giving the ball away on numerous occasions and Wenger must be concerned by the Englishman’s severe lack of form. On the other hand, one highlight of the game was the introduction of Alex Iwobi who looked bright and sharp. The Nigerian youngster showed confidence on the ball, speed and trickery to get past his defender several times. The future certainly seems bright for Iwobi and he could be an interesting option for the remainder of the season.

Having only taken two points from their last two games, further pressure is now heaped on the next game against Chelsea. This was already a crucial match in terms of the title run in as it is the last game Arsenal will play against a top side at the Emirates this season. For the rest of the campaign all of the Gunners big games are away from home and therefore picking up three points had already been vital. Following the last two results, this has now become crucial and therefore all Arsenal fans will hope that both Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil are back and in the starting line up for the Chelsea game.