Arsenal travel to the Potteries on the back of the epic 4-4 North London derby draw against Tottenham on Wednesday, and will be in no mood to fall further behind in the title race on Saturday afternoon (k/o 3pm). Arsene Wenger's men are a team that tradionally struggle against more physical opponants, but will need to be up for exactly that kind of battle if they are to bounce back, when they take on a Stoke side buoyed by the mid-week victory over Sunderland.
Stoke Team News:
Manager Tony Pulis has no fresh injury worries and is likely to field the same side that beat Sunderland 1-0 at the Britannia on Wednesday although he may decide to introduce Michael Tonge following his impressive cameo from the bench in Wednesday's win. Liam Lawrence underwent an operation on his troublesome ankle and is likely to return within the month.
Arsenal Team News:
Captain William Gallas is likely to miss the game with a hamstring injury with Kolo Toure favourite to replace him, whilst Emmanuel Eboue is also a doubt. Arsene Wenger may decide to introduce Abou Diaby to the team to provide more height and physical presence.
Probable Teams:
Stoke: Sorensen, Griffin, Abdoulaye Faye, Shawcross, Higginbotham, Soares, Olofinjana, Diao, Delap, Sidibe, Fuller
Arsenal: Almunia, Sagna, Silvestre, Toure, Clichy, Walcott, Fabregas, Diaby, Nasri, Adebayor, Van Persie
Last Arsenal Visit To Stoke
Stoke City 1-1 Arsenal (23-10-1996)
Mike Sheron gave Stoke a first half lead but a disputed Ian Wright goal gave Arsenal a share of the spoils in what proved to be the last ever League Cup tie at the Victoria Ground. Arsenal provailed in the return leg with a narrow 5-2 victory at Highbury.
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