John Walters scored the only goal of the game as Stoke City dented Arsenal’s Premier League title hopes on Saturday.
The Irishman converted from the spot with 14 minutes remaining as the Britannia Stadium once again proved to be a tough ground for Arsene Wenger’s men.
In a strangely subdued performance from the Gunners, Stoke had more possession throughout the 90 minutes and they almost took the lead early on when Peter Crouch attempted an acrobatic volley but he found the side netting. Walters then came close but his header flashed past Wojciech Szczesny’s goal, whilst Arsenal’s number one had to be on top form to deny Glenn Whelan moments later. It took half an hour for Arsenal to get a shot on target when Tomas Rosicky came close but Asmir Begovic was proving hard to beat. German playmaker Mesut Ozil was hauled on by Wenger in the second half but he did little to change the game and it was infact the home side who would take advantage and score. Laurent Koscielny it was who handled in the area and Walters stepped up to send the home crown into raptures and severely dent Arsenal’s title hopes.
