Positives to take from Arsenal defeat, says Hughes

Mark Scott
Mark Hughes: Stoke side stuck in the middle

Stoke manager Mark Hughes was glad he saw a more adventurous display from his side despite slipping to a 3-1 defeat against Arsenal.

The result brought to an end a decent run of form for the Potters, but boss Mark Hughes was largely happy with their efforts at the Emirates Stadium.

“I was reasonably pleased to a point,” Hughes said.

“I have brought teams here in the past and not got out of my own half.

“There have been very few occasions where we have created so many chances as we did against a very good Arsenal side.

“That is a positive on our part, we created some really good clear-cut chances, some in the first half and we got the penalty so we were 1-0 to the good which I thought was fine.

“I don’t think it was representative of how their half had panned out but clearly conceding just before half-time damaged us and allowed Arsenal to have a huge lift. I think if we had just managed to hold on, it would have made a difference.”