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Tactic Talk: How the form of Stoke’s wide men could be key to success.
A week before Stoke City’s biggest game in recent memory, in an FA Cup final against Manchester City, The Potters warmed up for the encounter with an impressive 3-1 home victory against Arsenal. Key to the result for Tony Pulis’ men was the performance of former-Arsenal winger, Jermaine Pennant.
Pennant, tormenting The Gunners from the opening, was awarded a free kick for a foul on the right flank. The winger than took the resulting kick, his cross meeting the chest of Kenwyne Jones, who casually converted to give Stoke the lead. On the stroke of half-time, Pennant would double his side’s advantage, a long-range strike, with the aid of a deflection, looping over Wojciech Szcezny for Pennant’s third league strike of the season. His seemingly modest tally, equalling his previous Premier League best, ironically, for Arsenal eight years ago.
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While opening scorer, Jones, finds himself Stoke’s top league scorer this season with nine, predictably, he is supported by Stoke’s other towering attacking threats, with Robert Huth and Jonathan Walters both on six. A strike behind the pair, is Pennant’s fellow Stoke wideman, Matthew Etherington. With five goals in 31 league appearances, Etherington faces a race to be fit for the final as he recovers from a torn hamstring. While the more regular names on Stoke scoresheets this season have been those of their sizeable forwards and backline, the contribution from wide areas has been vital to the creation of Stoke’s chances. While the obvious source of ammunition for Stoke’s controversial approach is the mammoth long throws of Rory Delap, the awarding of the seemingly extra set-pieces is commonly generated by the open play system is to move the ball wide, with the likes of Etherington and Pennant either supplying from wide, or earning the unparalleled method of Delap’s delivery.
While Stoke’s victory over Arsenal will give the side a massive moral boost ahead of Saturday’s Wembley clash, in their opponents, they find a Manchester City side typically lacking conventional width, particularly in their starting line-up, with City manager Roberto Mancini often opting for two midfield anchors and Yaya Toure pushing on from midfield to support leading scorer and captain, Carlos Tevez. As Stoke seek to contain City and impose their own system on the game, the inclusion of in-form Pennant and the possible inclusion of Etherington will see two of Stoke’s best performers this campaign providing for their aerially-gifted team mates.
Jermaine Pennant’s recent performance has come at a crucial time for Stoke City. With Matthew Etherington a doubt for the Wembley showpiece, Pennant’s form could become all the more crucial. His late withdrawal from their recent match, following an angry clash with Arsenal midfielder, Jack Wilshere, would suggest that his manager, Tony Pulis, would agree. As The Potters prepare to do battle with a City side, hungry for the first silverware of a new era at Eastlands, the key to Stoke City’s success, could well be found on the flanks.
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