Rap artist Jese sets Premier stage alight
No comeback from Arsenal this time as Stoke’s new striker puts down Wenger with top-class finish
STOKE CITY’S newest superstar, Jese Rodriguez, is a man of sublime football skills with another career as a recording artist who goes by the alter ego of Jey M.
Jese scored the winner against Arsenal and the stadium resounded to the familiar beat of the Wenger Rap, a dissonant, angry tune that may signal another long and fraught season ahead for the Gunners.
A few months ago, when Arsenal won 4-1 here, some of their fans hired a plane and flew a banner over the bet365 Stadium that read: ‘Wenger — Out Means Out.’
After an unconvincing win over Leicester in their opening game followed by a performance that lacked conviction here and a 1-0 defeat, it will not be long until the discontent resurfaces.
Arsenal dominated the game and made chance after chance after chance but their finishing was wasteful and the goalkeeping of Jack Butland was inspired and Jese was ready to make his mark.
He has come here from Real Madrid via Paris Saint-Germain and the quality of his second-half finish showed his pedigree.
He is a crowd favourite already and when he was substituted in the 70th minute, he was given a standing ovation. Stoke have been criticised for showing a lack of ambition in the build-up to this season but the evidence of this game suggested that they have the potential to become an accomplished side.
They have a fine goalkeeper in Butland, a strong unyielding defence, clever, experienced central midfielders in Darren Fletcher and Joe Allen and forwards of genuine class like Xherdan Shaqiri, Saido Berahino and now Jese. What’s not to like?
It has become an oft-quoted statistic that there are more Champions League winners in Mark Hughes’ squad than in any other team in the Premier League now Jese has joined Fletcher, Bojan, Shaqiri and Ibrahim Afellay in the ranks. Whatever it is worth, there were times in this game when Stoke showed real class and composure.
Jese almost made an immediate impact when he skipped past the challenge of Shkodran Mustafi in the third minute and advanced on Petr Cech. Cech was quick off his line, though, and blocked Jese’s shot as he tried to squeeze it home.
Arsenal were the better side in the opening exchanges, though, playing some neat, clever football that pulled the Stoke defence out of position and should have led to them breaking the deadlock.
Alexandre Lacazette set up a chance for Aaron Ramsey when he muscled Fletcher off the ball and chipped over the Stoke defence but a Mame Biram Diouf challenge did enough to knock Ramsey off balance and his shot was weak.
A few minutes later, Alex OxladeChamberlain set up an almost identical chance for Danny Welbeck with a brilliantly subtle pass but the striker sidefooted a half-volley straight at Butland.
Welbeck is a fine player and his pace unsettled the Stoke defence all afternoon but he is not the clinical finisher Arsenal need him to be. Against the best teams, Wenger’s side need to put chances like that away or they will be punished.
They were nearly punished quickly here too. A minute after Welbeck’s miss, Stoke launched a lightning breakaway and Jese shrugged off Hector Bellerin and Granit Xhaka way too easily and cut the ball back for Eric ChoupoMoting, who should have scored but shot tamely at Cech.
There has been much talk of Butland dethroning Joe Hart as England goalkeeper and he proved his excellence again after half an hour when Oxlade-Chamberlain floated a free kick to the back post and Ramsey ghosted on to it. The Welshman met it on the volley and struck it well and on target but Butland spread himself and the ball bounced off him away to safety. The goalkeeper didn’t know much about the save but his positioning was superb and he is exuding confidence.
Jese had faded from the game a little but he deceived Xhaka with a beautiful piece of skill on the touchline to win a free-kick and remind Arsenal of his presence. Stoke should have taken the lead soon after but unmarked Ryan Shawcross headed over from six yards.
It was only a brief reprieve for Arsenal. Two minutes after half time, Jese picked the ball up in the Arsenal half and ran at the defence. He played a short pass to Berahino — on for Shaqiri — and ran on to a perfectly weighted return.
Cech came off his line to narrow the angle but Jese swept the ball past him with a clinical left-footed finish. It was a glimpse of his class but it was also a worryingly simple goal for this fragile Arsenal defence to concede.
It woke Wenger’s side up. Suddenly, they were all over Stoke. Butland fumbled a weak shot from Bellerin but recovered just in time as Welbeck threatened to pounce.
Welbeck’s finishing let him down again a couple of minutes later when he ran unmarked on to a cross from the left but mistimed his leap and the ball bounced off his shoulder on to the roof of the net. Welbeck grimaced in disappointment.
Stoke nearly went further ahead after an hour when Berahino got across his marker to meet a driven Erik Pieters cross from the left. Berahino headed the ball down into the turf and it was bouncing high towards the roof of the net until Cech produced a brilliant reaction save to push it over the bar.
Welbeck missed another chance midway through the half when he was played in by substitute Olivier Giroud but could only manage a scuffed shot that Butland was able
to push away. ‘Every time,’ Welbeck mouthed at the referee, suggesting he had been held, but he could have been referring to his profligacy.
Lacazette hit a shot into the roof of the net and brought Wenger and his assistant Steve Bould leaping from the bench but the effort was ruled out for offside. Replays showed it was the tightest of decisions.
As Arsenal pressed, they were nearly caught out by another break. This time, Pieters’ charge forward was ended by a robust studs-up challenge from Mustafi that left the Stoke defender writhing on the ground in agony. The referee waved play on and Arsenal refused to put the ball out, to the understandable dismay of the home crowd.
It is one of the curiosities of football that play is allowed to go on when a player appears genuinely hurt and is often halted for what seems to be little more than fatigue. After lengthy treatment, Pieters returned to the pitch but was substituted soon afterwards.
The theme of Arsenal’s match persisted until deep into injury time when Giroud wriggled free of his marker but could only direct his free header well wide of Butland’s righthand post.
The angst of the defeat is only just beginning.