Arsenal Keep Hopes of Top-4 Finish Alive with Win vs. Stoke City

Arsenal thrashed Stoke City 4-1 at the bet365 Stadium on Saturday to keep their hopes of finishing in the top four and qualifying for next season's UEFA Champions League alive.

Goals from Mesut Ozil, Alexis Sanchez and a brace from Olivier Giroud sealed the points for the Gunners, who remain fifth, but just a point behind Liverpool and three adrift of Manchester City in third.

Giroud and Ozil put Arsenal 2-0 in front before substitute Peter Crouch gave them a scare after netting a controversial goal for Stoke, when the target man appeared to put the ball in with his hand.

However, the Gunners' response was swift and ruthless, with Sanchez scoring the third before Giroud wrapped up the points.

The visitors made two notable changes from Wednesday's win at Southampton. Frenchman Francis Coquelin came in for Aaron Ramsey in midfield, while Giroud replaced Danny Welbeck up front, per the club's official Twitter account:

As for Stoke, the hosts included Mame Biram Diouf in attack, per the club:

Arsenal went close twice early on, first when Shkodran Mustafi's header from a corner forced Stoke goalkeeper Jack Butland into a fantastic save. Moments later, wing-back Nacho Monreal should have opened the scoring but cannoned his header off the inside of the post with Butland beaten.

Despite the missed chances, the Gunners were on top in the opening exchanges. They controlled possession through midfield as Stoke sat deep, allowing the visitors to string pass after pass together.

Squawka Football summed up how efficient Arsenal were on the ball:

Even though they dominated possession and created chances, the Gunners had to wait until just over three minutes before half-time to take the lead their bright start had merited. Giroud tapped into an empty net following Hector Bellerin's low cross across the face of goal after the wing-back had been released by a deft ball from Coquelin.

The goal marked a rarity for the Gunners in this fixture, according to OptaJoe:

Another goal also maintained a healthy scoring run for Giroud, a striker often maligned for a supposed profligacy in front of the net, per WhoScored.com:

As for Bellerin, he's been in and out of the team this year while struggling for form, but the 22-year-old has established a knack of supplying goals since 2014:

Arsenal had the lead, but Stoke had been surprisingly diffident compared to the intensity they have displayed in this fixture previously. In particular, the home side's willingness to sit off was letting the Gunners midfielders boss the game.

One Arsenal man who especially benefited from Stoke's stand-off approach was Coquelin. James Benge of the London Evening Standard rightly commended the nominal holding player's quality on the ball:

The Gunners still had too much time on the ball and for runners off it after the break, and they doubled their lead 10 minutes after the restart. Typically, it was star duo Ozil and Sanchez who provided the magic, with the latter releasing Ozil with a superb through pass before the German lifted the ball delicately over Butland.

Usually known for his goals, Sanchez also has an underrated flair for creating chances, as these numbers from WhoScored.com prove:

Sanchez has also established a prolific partnership with Ozil, per Sky Sports Statto:

Needing to change things, Stoke boss Mark Hughes brought strikers Crouch and Saido Berahino off the bench. Predictably, regular Arsenal tormentor Crouch didn't waste time getting one back for the Potters, although the goal looked like a clear handball:

Crouch's touch off his hand was missed by referee Mike Dean, who also inexplicably overlooked a foul on Bellerin in the buildup. However, John Cross of the Daily Mirror didn't put the blame on Dean for not ruling out the goal:

Things looked like they would get worse for the Gunners when star man Sanchez indicated he needed to come off after receiving some rough treatment from Stoke. However, Sanchez stayed on and soon restored Arsenal's two-goal lead firing low into the bottom corner.

The goal marked a landmark in the Chilean's Arsenal career, per Squawka football:

OptaJoe also noted it continued the forward's prolific form on his travels this season:

Buoyed by the goal, the Gunners were purring and began overwhelming Stoke between the lines. Ramsey came off the substitutes bench to force Butland into another smart stop before helping Giroud complete his brace and seal the points.

The Frenchman tapped in when Ramsey pulled back in the box after another typically perfectly timed late run in behind. Arsenal had turned up the heat since feeling rightly aggrieved by the awarding of Crouch's goal.

It was Crouch who forced Cech into a fine save down low after winning another header, with the Arsenal stopper also superbly keeping out a Geoff Cameron shot. Yet it was the most Stoke mustered in the final stages as Arsenal cruised to a mightily impressive win at one of their least favourite grounds.

Post-Match Reaction

Wenger applauded his team's individual stars and their impact, per Dan Gibbs of the Daily Express: "I believe when the team plays well we have the right individual talent to win."

The Arsenal manager also commended how his team stayed strong after Crouch's controversial goal: "When they scored the 'hand-goal' they came back but when you go to places like Stoke you need at some stage to suffer and stick together and that's what we did."

Wenger revealed how he'd thought about indulging Sanchez's desire to come off before the third goal: "The physios told me Alexis Sanchez wanted to come off, I don't know what it was, but he's a fighter and found the resources to score an excellent goal after."

When asked about his team's chances of finishing fourth, Wenger simply kept the focus on Arsenal's next game, Tuesday's home encounter with Sunderland, per Benge:

Wenger was also asked about his future, specifically relating to a report from French publication L'Equipe (h/t Charles Watts of Football.London) he will sign a one-year contract this summer. However, the manager, whose deal expires at the end of this season, offered no update on his plans:

As for Hughes, he felt his team made it too easy for the Gunners:

Hughes also addressed the anger among some of the home supporters, with many leaving well before the end after boos greeted the hosts at half-time:

Stoke fell flat on the day, but Arsenal emerged with credit after an emphatic and stylish performance. In this form, the Gunners have given themselves every chance of qualifying for the Champions League once again.