Arsenal have slipped to third place in the Premier League, four points behind leaders Chelsea after losing 1-0 to Stoke City at the Britannia Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
A penalty from Jonathan Walters, awarded after Laurent Koscielny had handled in the area fourteen minutes from time, was enough to secure all three points to Mark Hughes’ men and give Liverpool the opportunity to leapfrog the Gunners into second place, which they look after winning at Southampton later in the day.
Chelsea beat Fulham by three goals to one at Craven Cottage to strengthen their grip on first place, while Manchester City beat Sunderland at Wembley to win the Capital One Cup, leaving them with two league games in hand over the rest of the top four.
Arsene Wenger’s men now face the prospect of potentially being ten points of the pace by the time of their next league game against Tottenham Hotspur at White Hart Lane a week on Sunday.
The Gunners face Everton in the FA Cup quarter finals next weekend, while Chelsea host Spurs in the league while the following weekend, the Blues travel to Aston Villa twenty-four hours before the North London derby takes place.
