If you came here for a full review, you can turn right around: I've only watched the first half and 25 minutes or so (from 71st) of the second half. I don't know what happened in-between and, frankly, I don't want to know.
Also, my review will contain very few positive moments, so if you aren't looking to set the wrong tone to the remainder of your Sunday, you can also stop right here. For the rest of you, here goes.
The squad
Szczesny and Koscielny didn't make it and I wonder what would have been if they had. Martinez retained his spot between the sticks and his inexperience showed, though he can hardly be blamed for any of the goals.
He was protected (ahem) by a back four of Bellerin, Mertesacker, Chambers and Gibbs. No, "protected" is a wrong verb here. It implies that the Argentine was somehow shielded and kept safe from Stoke attacks, which he wasn't. Our defenders ran around like headless chickens, though receiving little support from Flamini and Ramsey hardly helped.
If anything, I don't get the decision to play Bellerin. The only reasonable explanation I can find is that Koscielny couldn't play and only made the bench because there was no one else. However, this game showed why Arsene was reluctant to use the Spaniard. He's still raw and, what's more important, not very physical. Which counts when you play Stoke.
The first half
I only just made it in time for the kick-off. Yesterday was my first day back at uni after spending a week down with flu. I didn't get a proper night's sleep, then had to sit through three classes (with a window between them, mercifully) and, on top of all that, the tube wasn't functioning properly and after 5 hours' sleep and seven hours at uni I had to take the bus, the tube and do quite a bit of walking on my way home home. I entered my apartment 15 minutes before kick-off, physically drained and ready to collapse. Only I knew I couldn't, because I had a game to watch. A game I've been looking forward to and which may have been the only reason I stayed on my feet.
30 seconds into the match I wish I was stuck somewhere else. Anywhere but in front of the TV. The first goal was as unexpected as it was just, because our defense broke down during the episode. All our defenders switched off completely: Gibbs gave whoever it was the time to cross the ball, Chambers failed to head it away, though he shouldn't have, and Bellerin was up on his own against Crouch with Mert nowhere to be found. 1-0.
We could have equalised right away and we really should have done so. Bellerin got to the ball no one expected him to and crossed it towards unmarked Giroud. The Frenchman had the goal at his mercy and the simplest of tasks of nodding the ball home. He missed.
After that, it was all Stoke. We found ourselves outfought by a team which was flirting with the relegation zone before the start of the game. I vaguely remember Cazorla's effort drifting over the bar, but that was all. As far as I know, we didn't pull off a single shot on target during the first half.
Unlike Stoke. They had four shots, three of which went in. Their second again came from a cross from the left. Gibbs did nothing to prevent (was it Walters?) from crossing, Bojan's run was timed perfectly and no one cared to mark the former Barcelona man. 2-0.
Stoke continued attacking and got a third right at the death. A cross from a corner caused such panic and confusion between our defenders that no one spotted Walters at the far post. He smashed the ball into the roof of the net. I didn't see the replays of the moment, cause I immediately turned the TV off.
The second half
Despite not watching the first 25 minutes of this half, I couldn't bring myself to not follow the game on Twitter. I caught whiff of Sanchez hitting the post after a brilliant run from a halfway line saw the Chilean round off two defenders and Begovic, knew Stoke had a goal disallowed and was astonished when first Cazorla and then Ramsey found the net inside three minutes. I rushed back to the TV.
We were piling up the pressure alright. Bellerin was subbed for Welbeck at HT and then a hopelessly ineffective Giroud gave way to Podolski. The German had a header saved, which was his only decent moment from these 25 remaining minutes.
However, our best attempts to equalise led to nothing (not even many real chances) and then Chambers saw red. Calum held off Bojan some thirty yards from goal for only his second foul of the game and was immediately dished out a second yellow. There were only ten of our players left and even Campbell's introduction for Gibbs led to nothing. 3-2 it finished.
The verdict
Firstly, the positive moments, these tiny silver linings to a gigantic thunderstorm cloud. I liked Ramsey's goal very much, it was purely a moment of brilliance from the Welshman. A beautiful shot on the volley which puts an end to Ramsey's goal-drought and which will (hopefully) enable him to abandon his quest for goals and concentrate on other aspects of his game.
I'm also happy for Cazorla, who took the responsibility and converted the penalty for his second goal of the season. And, of course, it's better to lose 3-2 rather than 3-0 from a purely psychological point of view, because we showed some character and got something for it.
Finally, our away fans were brilliant. They were singing their hearts out at 3-2, completely muting the useless prick of a commentator on NTV+ football. I can recall only one moment when Arsenal fans' singing brought a tear to my eye. Two years ago, when we were losing to Bayern 3-0 at home.
And now the bad. First up is our defense. From inexperience of Bellerin to indifference of Mertesacker, we've had it all yesterday. Throw in an injured and out-of-form Gibbs and suspended Chambers and you get the idea of how useless our defense was.
Oh, the suspension. I know it's commonplace to start blaming the ref, but Anthony Taylor yesterday had a nightmare of a game. From not booking Crouch for a hand-in-the-face to letting off Charlie Adam for choking Sanchez with only a yellow. That's not to blame the ref for the loss, just to point out his complete and utter incompetence.
Finally, Arsene Wenger. Like after the game against United he spoke about positives and I find it not simply offensive, it's outrageous. Just admit for once we were not good enough. Stop with the excuses, man up. Admit yours and your players' mistakes.
I don't know, where we go from here and I don't like to think about it. I'll be back on Tuesday with a preview and will maybe have something more constructive to say.
Until then
Follow me on Twitter (@AlexBaguzin)
Also, my review will contain very few positive moments, so if you aren't looking to set the wrong tone to the remainder of your Sunday, you can also stop right here. For the rest of you, here goes.
The squad
Szczesny and Koscielny didn't make it and I wonder what would have been if they had. Martinez retained his spot between the sticks and his inexperience showed, though he can hardly be blamed for any of the goals.
He was protected (ahem) by a back four of Bellerin, Mertesacker, Chambers and Gibbs. No, "protected" is a wrong verb here. It implies that the Argentine was somehow shielded and kept safe from Stoke attacks, which he wasn't. Our defenders ran around like headless chickens, though receiving little support from Flamini and Ramsey hardly helped.
If anything, I don't get the decision to play Bellerin. The only reasonable explanation I can find is that Koscielny couldn't play and only made the bench because there was no one else. However, this game showed why Arsene was reluctant to use the Spaniard. He's still raw and, what's more important, not very physical. Which counts when you play Stoke.
The first half
I only just made it in time for the kick-off. Yesterday was my first day back at uni after spending a week down with flu. I didn't get a proper night's sleep, then had to sit through three classes (with a window between them, mercifully) and, on top of all that, the tube wasn't functioning properly and after 5 hours' sleep and seven hours at uni I had to take the bus, the tube and do quite a bit of walking on my way home home. I entered my apartment 15 minutes before kick-off, physically drained and ready to collapse. Only I knew I couldn't, because I had a game to watch. A game I've been looking forward to and which may have been the only reason I stayed on my feet.
30 seconds into the match I wish I was stuck somewhere else. Anywhere but in front of the TV. The first goal was as unexpected as it was just, because our defense broke down during the episode. All our defenders switched off completely: Gibbs gave whoever it was the time to cross the ball, Chambers failed to head it away, though he shouldn't have, and Bellerin was up on his own against Crouch with Mert nowhere to be found. 1-0.
We could have equalised right away and we really should have done so. Bellerin got to the ball no one expected him to and crossed it towards unmarked Giroud. The Frenchman had the goal at his mercy and the simplest of tasks of nodding the ball home. He missed.
After that, it was all Stoke. We found ourselves outfought by a team which was flirting with the relegation zone before the start of the game. I vaguely remember Cazorla's effort drifting over the bar, but that was all. As far as I know, we didn't pull off a single shot on target during the first half.
Unlike Stoke. They had four shots, three of which went in. Their second again came from a cross from the left. Gibbs did nothing to prevent (was it Walters?) from crossing, Bojan's run was timed perfectly and no one cared to mark the former Barcelona man. 2-0.
Stoke continued attacking and got a third right at the death. A cross from a corner caused such panic and confusion between our defenders that no one spotted Walters at the far post. He smashed the ball into the roof of the net. I didn't see the replays of the moment, cause I immediately turned the TV off.
The second half
Despite not watching the first 25 minutes of this half, I couldn't bring myself to not follow the game on Twitter. I caught whiff of Sanchez hitting the post after a brilliant run from a halfway line saw the Chilean round off two defenders and Begovic, knew Stoke had a goal disallowed and was astonished when first Cazorla and then Ramsey found the net inside three minutes. I rushed back to the TV.
We were piling up the pressure alright. Bellerin was subbed for Welbeck at HT and then a hopelessly ineffective Giroud gave way to Podolski. The German had a header saved, which was his only decent moment from these 25 remaining minutes.
However, our best attempts to equalise led to nothing (not even many real chances) and then Chambers saw red. Calum held off Bojan some thirty yards from goal for only his second foul of the game and was immediately dished out a second yellow. There were only ten of our players left and even Campbell's introduction for Gibbs led to nothing. 3-2 it finished.
The verdict
Firstly, the positive moments, these tiny silver linings to a gigantic thunderstorm cloud. I liked Ramsey's goal very much, it was purely a moment of brilliance from the Welshman. A beautiful shot on the volley which puts an end to Ramsey's goal-drought and which will (hopefully) enable him to abandon his quest for goals and concentrate on other aspects of his game.
I'm also happy for Cazorla, who took the responsibility and converted the penalty for his second goal of the season. And, of course, it's better to lose 3-2 rather than 3-0 from a purely psychological point of view, because we showed some character and got something for it.
Finally, our away fans were brilliant. They were singing their hearts out at 3-2, completely muting the useless prick of a commentator on NTV+ football. I can recall only one moment when Arsenal fans' singing brought a tear to my eye. Two years ago, when we were losing to Bayern 3-0 at home.
And now the bad. First up is our defense. From inexperience of Bellerin to indifference of Mertesacker, we've had it all yesterday. Throw in an injured and out-of-form Gibbs and suspended Chambers and you get the idea of how useless our defense was.
Oh, the suspension. I know it's commonplace to start blaming the ref, but Anthony Taylor yesterday had a nightmare of a game. From not booking Crouch for a hand-in-the-face to letting off Charlie Adam for choking Sanchez with only a yellow. That's not to blame the ref for the loss, just to point out his complete and utter incompetence.
Finally, Arsene Wenger. Like after the game against United he spoke about positives and I find it not simply offensive, it's outrageous. Just admit for once we were not good enough. Stop with the excuses, man up. Admit yours and your players' mistakes.
I don't know, where we go from here and I don't like to think about it. I'll be back on Tuesday with a preview and will maybe have something more constructive to say.
Until then
Follow me on Twitter (@AlexBaguzin)