Stoke City vs. Arsenal: Rating All the Gunners Against the Potters

Perhaps, on another day, in a different season, Arsenal fans would be perfectly content with a 0-0 draw at Stoke City, but there was a feeling of real unease at the final whistle, as the Gunners drew a blank in their second consecutive match.

After finishing goalless against Sunderland eight days ago, many expected another week of training and players getting to know each other to produce a cohesive attack, but Stoke's hard work and some poor finishing from Arsenal kept the nets stiff for another week.

Of course, it wasn't all bad; a solid defensive effort gave the traditionally porous Gunners their second clean sheet in a row, and they are undefeated through two matches. That's something that Manchester United, Tottenham and Liverpool can't say.

Overall, the match against Stoke showed that this is still a team that fans can get excited about. Let's break it down and rate how each individual player did at the Britannia Stadium.

Substitutes

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain: 5.5

Arsene Wenger threw Oxlade-Chamberlain on late in the match for Lukas Podolski to inject some pace into the Gunners' attack. But the young man's contributions were minimal, and he effectively ended the game with a wayward cross.

Theo Walcott: 6.5

Like Oxlade-Chamberlain, Walcott was only on the pitch for about 10 minutes, including stoppage time, but he did fairly well and made some decent runs through Stoke's defence that created a couple half-chances.

Aaron Ramsey: 6

A relatively brief cameo from the Welshman, who replaced Santi Cazorla to a chorus of disgraceful boos. I'm tempted to write "N/A" here, but Ramsey worked hard and probed for a goal just like Cazorla had.

Vito Mannone: 6.5

I'll give the third-choice Italian stopper his due for keeping a clean sheet in a match that few Arsenal goalkeepers have been able to do in the recent past.

But he was very rarely troubled due to Arsenal's domination in possession, and the ball rarely worked its way into threatening positions when Stoke had it.

That said, he was reliable when called upon, and this should give him confidence going forward.

Carl Jenkinson: 4.5

Unfortunately, in the perfect fixture for Carl Jenkinson to display his outstanding crossing talents, he went completely missing and rarely turned up in good attacking positions.

The only time I can remember him getting into Stoke's third and trying to have a go, he created confusion that eventually led to the Potters regaining possession on a goal kick.

He did not commit any major errors defensively, though, and he never looked like a particularly weak link in a back four that was quite strong on the day.

Nevertheless, it is a shame that he was never able to put his ability to use.

Per Mertesacker: 7

Having a center-back who is 6'6" and doesn't shy away from a good confrontation is a huge asset against Stoke, and Mertesacker put in a very good shift against the likes of Peter Crouch, who tried, unsuccessfully, to bully his way through Arsenal's defence.

When long balls were sent into the box on multiple occasions, Mertesacker took charge and used his height the right way to clear the ball or at least move it to a less-threatening position if under pressure.

His distribution was good, as well, which allowed the midfield to start numerous attacks and counterattacks, and settled the game down.

Laurent Koscielny will probably get his place in the side back against Liverpool, but Arsenal have good depth in defence with Mertesacker.

Thomas Vermaelen: 8.5

The main reason why Arsenal will travel to Liverpool with two consecutive clean sheets is Thomas Vermaelen, who was everywhere he needed to be and made every crucial stop with his head or feet.

While he cracks the six-foot barrier, Vermaelen is not the tallest center-half. But his height belies really exceptional aerial ability, and the Belgian was just about as good as Per Mertesacker at defending any and all crosses that came his way.

And whenever the ball fell to someone in a threatening position or Stoke got close to creating something on the ground, the captain was always there, making sure Vito Mannone rarely had a shot come his way and frustrating every opposing attacker.

Assuming he stays healthy, Vermaelen could easily become a rock at the back for Arsenal.

Kieran Gibbs: 7.5

It's getting somewhat lost among all the furor over two consecutive goalless displays, but Kieran Gibbs is really maturing into a heck of a defender.

He was very positive going forward, as usual, and much of the reason why Lukas Podolski was so effective was because of the support that his full-back gave him.

But Jermaine Pennant was utterly silenced on the right side, and Gibbs was always there to make a very good tackle whenever Stoke began to threaten. He was especially good when tracking back and making up ground on an attacker.

It's not hard to see why Arsene Wenger prefers him to Andre Santos at this point.

Mikel Arteta: 7

With Alex Song plying his trade in Catalonia these days, there has been much discussion about who will occupy his defensive role. Many fans were disappointed when Nuri Sahin was confirmed as a Liverpool player.

But maybe Arsenal don't need another defensive midfielder. Perhaps a disciplined player like Mikel Arteta can do his best impersonation of Claude Makelele and shield the defence while distributing the ball to his teammates.

If his performance against Stoke can serve as a test case, that might well be what Arsene Wenger opts to do. Arteta's work ethic was very impressive and he rarely gives away the ball, which is exactly what you want from someone who is playing the "Makelele role."

However, he looked a bit lost at times when Santi Cazorla was further forward and needs to actively get involved more.

Abou Diaby: 6.5

It's hard to accurately assess Abou Diaby's performance because the one thing that remained constant throughout the match was that he was inconsistent.

Occasionally, Diaby would win the ball back with a good tough challenge and display the physicality that we all know belies his lanky frame. His distribution was all right and there were the periodic runs forward with the ball.

But, as the intermediary between Arteta and Cazorla for much of the game, Diaby often got a bit lost in the shuffle. Rotating between the roles of pseudo-defensive midfielder and attacking midfielder, the Frenchman did all right in both roles, but excelled in neither.

Hey, at least he's playing again! And he can still be a huge asset to the team when he is on the pitch.

Santi Cazorla: 8

Once again, it was little Santi Cazorla rising above the rest to pull the strings in midfield and show his tremendous quality, following a delightful performance against Sunderland with a dominant display in Stoke.

With impeccable close control and the ability to bounce off many of the Potters' nasty challenges, Cazorla distributed the ball to his teammates very well and almost always seemed to keep attacks flowing in a positive direction.

And, just like last weekend, he was not afraid to have a go from distance, and his 30-yard effort in the first half was one of the only things that troubled Asmir Begovic until much later in the game.

Arsenal have to avoid the extremely tempting route of simply giving the ball to him and waiting for the magic to happen, but, used properly, Cazorla figures to be a vital part of this team.

Gervinho: 6.5

Gervinho was probably a more intelligent choice on the right wing than Theo Walcott, whose pace is rendered nearly useless by teams who sit deep like Stoke, but his poor decision-making when it counted most cost Arsenal.

The flow of play, in general, did not go through the Ivorian's wing, and he was much less involved than against Sunderland, when constant running at defenders and incisive passing created multiple chances.

Unfortunately for Gervinho, the spark deserted him this time, and an old criticism returned to haunt him: shooting.

In a match that needed someone to take control with a well-placed shot, Gervinho joined his teammates in not being able to come close to the net. At one point, he was in a bit of space in the penalty box, but yanked his effort so far wide that it could have been a low cross.

Lukas Podolski: 8

Podolski seemed to struggle a bit last week against Sunderland when Arsene Wenger played him as a central striker, but he looked much more comfortable on the left wing with the frequent cut inside.

What separates him from Arsenal's other wingers is his strength. While he doesn't quite fit the mold of a central striker like Olivier Giroud, Podolski has the strength to easily hold off right-backs, and that powerful, direct presence was very helpful when he was on the pitch.

When Podolski is on the left wing, he can also showcase more of his technical skill, and slicing his way inside to very threatening positions is a great way to do so. Many of the midfield's passes found their way to his feet in a central spot, and he almost scored with one of Arsenal's best chances early on after a move like this.

As he gels with the rest of his fellow forwards and midfielders, expect Podolski's influence to grow.

Olivier Giroud: 6.5

Against a team like Stoke, any striker has to be ready for an absolute beating from a tandem of relentlessly physical center-backs. Olivier Giroud is one of the few Premier League forwards who is set up to take that punishment.

While a goal again eluded him, Giroud put in a very good shift up front and worked very hard all game to hold up the ball, make slicing runs off it and go for goal when no one else seemed able to.

The problem for the Frenchman was that nothing really came together for him. He had a half chance from a corner kick and nearly scored an insane goal from 40 yards out on the left wing, but he looks a little tentative and unsure of exactly what to do when Arsenal are pushing forward.

I'm not discouraged, though. Giroud certainly did not have his best performance today, but you can see that there is a very good striker in that big body, and the same goes for Podolski. We just have to wait a little longer for this relatively new unit to coalesce.

Follow @charliemelman