Flashbacks for Stoke at home can be found here and here.

Stoke’s Victoria Ground – opened in 1878 - had been the oldest operating Football Ground in England until its demolition in 1997. Woolwich Arsenal’s first visit there came in March 1905, which resulted in a 0-2 loss for the Gunners. Arsenal would also play their first FA Cup Semi Final at the Victoria Ground against Newcastle in 1906, which they lost 0-2. Three years later however, Stoke were forced to resign from the Football League after they were placed into liquidation at the end of the 1907/08 season. If any Arsenal fans think this is historical cause for celebration, they might want to be informed that though a new board of directors was formed by the Potters a month later, which sought re-election to the League for the following season, their place within the Football League was in fact taken by none other than Tottenham Hotspur.

As a result, Stoke were forced to restart again in the Birmingham & District League and for a period in the 1910s played in the Southern League. Stoke however were readmitted to the Football League after the First World War for the 1919/20 season and in 1932/33 returned to the top flight of English football for the first time since 1906/07. After their first season back, Stoke’s squad were featured here in Pathe News’ series on Famous Clubs in training in 1934. Arsene Wenger may have made the claim in recent years that Stoke can’t play football, likening them to team from the Oval ball code, one man who formed an important part of their history – born within the City and the rising star of the side which returned Stoke to the top flight - obviously stands in contradiction to this, as well becoming the first footballer to win the Ballon D’or in 1956.

Making his debut for Stoke in March 1932 away at Bury was Stanley Matthews, who was the undoubted star of the Potters’ side throughout the 1930s. Arsenal’s first win away at the Victoria Ground came in September 1935 with a 3-0 victory secured with goals from Jack Crayston and two for Cliff Bastin. That season however would be Stoke City’s highest ever top flight finish to the season, even finishing two points above Arsenal in sixth place. It would be one of just two top half finishes for Stoke during the 1930s, however Arsenal’s win at the Victoria Ground that season would be Arsenal’s only victory there during the thirties.

The Gunners’ five other visits to the Victoria Ground brought four draws (a 0-0 draw in March 1937 brought Stoke a record attendance of 51,480) and a defeat in the two sides’ last meeting before the Second World War, in which Stoke inflict a 0-1 loss on Arsenal. In the immediate post-war period, Stoke would be present at Football’s first post-war tragedy on 9th March 1946, which occurred during the second leg of their FA Cup Quarter Final tie (for that one season FA Cup ties were played over two legs) away at Bolton, known as the Burnden Park Disaster. Overcrowding from such a huge crowd desperate to return to football attendance after a six year gap, resulted in a crush where thirty three people lost their lives. The game was delayed for half an hour as the dead and injured were taken from the terraces, the deceased were merely covered in coats along the touchline.

When the game restarted a new sawdust lined touchline separated the players from the bodies (Stoke’s Stanley Matthews had later stated that he was sickened that the game was allowed to continue). When League football resumed in 1946/47, Arsenal’s form away at the Victoria Ground wouldn’t fare much better, with Stoke inflicting a 1-3 defeat on Arsenal in their first post-war visit to the Potteries in February 1947. That year Stoke were actually in the running for the first post-war League title, however finished two points off of that year’s Champions Liverpool. An extremely cold winter meant that the football league season stretched out to Mid-June, with Stoke’s away defeat to Sheffield United on 14th June 1947 being the latest fixture ever played in a season. It was also this fixture which handed the title to Liverpool, as well as being Stanley Matthews’ last game before transferring to Blackpool.

The following February, Arsenal picked up a 0-0 draw on their way to the 1947/48 title. In 1948/49 however, the following August experienced a 0-1 defeat to Stoke. In May 1950, on the final Saturday of the season and one week after lifting the FA Cup, Arsenal finished 1949/50 on a high with a 5-2 win at the Victoria Ground with goals from Cup Final hero Reg Lewis, Ian McPherson and a hat-trick for Doug Lishman. By the time of Stoke’s demotion to the second tier in 1952/53 after finishing second from bottom, Arsenal had only managed just two wins away at Stoke. For the Potters however, it would be a decade before their return to the top tier.

While languishing at the bottom of the second tier in 1961, at the incredible age of forty six Stanley Matthews would return back to Stoke after a fourteen year absence. Even more incredibly, it was Stan’s goal against Luton Town which clinched promotion back to the top flight at the end of 1962/83. Stan would be the first footballer to be knighted, which occurred while his playing career was still going on. Stan however would finally retire at the age of fifty, with this here footage of a Civic Reception in his honour, as well his testimonial game in 1965.

On Stoke’s return to the top flight in 1963/64, Arsenal’s first game back at the Victoria Ground resulted in a 2-1 win for the Gunners with both goals from Joe Baker. The following season however, three days after Christmas 1964 Arsenal suffered a 1-4 thumping away at Stoke. There followed however three Victories out of four for Arsenal at the Victoria Ground, the first was a 3-1 win in late January 1966 with goals from Don Howe and two for John Radford. On April 1st 1967, Arsenal drew 2-2 with both goals coming from George Graham. A week before Christmas 1967 GG would score again in a 1-0 win at the Victoria Ground and then in April 1969 left Stoke with both points courtesy of a 3-1 win with George Armstrong and David Court on the scoresheet and a Stoke own goal.

On 26th September 1970 however came a rude awakening for the Gunners after their visit to the Victoria Ground that season ended in a 0-5 defeat. Arsenal of course went on to win the Double that season, with important victories over Stoke in the League and FA Cup at the business end of 1970/71. The following season, in January 1972 Arsenal’s visit to the Victoria Ground ended in a 0-0 draw. The two sides however were to meet again in the Semi Final of the FA Cup for the second season running. This here is the ITN footage of that replay which Arsenal won 2-1 at Goodison Park to set up a second successive FA Cup Final for the Gunners.

The following October, disaster struck Stoke’s World Cup winning goalkeeper Gordon Banks, as he had lost sight in one eye as a result of a head on collision with another vehicle on his way home from Stoke City’s training ground, losing the sight in one eye as a result, which ended his playing career despite being the reigning Football Writers player of the year. He did however attempt a return to Football, seen here turning out for a local parks side, as well as an England Select XI in Greece. He also returned to full time professional football with Fort Lauderdale Strikers in 1977 in the NASL and was awarded the league’s goalkeeper of the year in 1978.

Between the Semi Final victory in 1972 and Stoke’s relegation in 1977, Arsenal won only once with a 2-0 win four days before Christmas 1974 with two goals for Brian Kidd. Stoke returned to the top flight in 1979/80, with Arsenal winning away 3-2 at the Victoria Ground in March with goals from Liam Brady, David Price and Alan Sunderland. Two seasons later, Arsenal would take the points again with a 1-0 win secured by an Alan Sunderland goal. However before Stoke’s quarter of a century long absence from top flight football, Arsenal would endure three straight defeats away at the Victoria Ground – losing 1-2 in August 1982 and 0-1 in January 1984.

In 1984/85, Stoke would endure an annus horibulus of a season winning just two games all season at the time of Arsenal’s visit to the Victoria ground at the end of March 1985, Stoke were on course to break Woolwich Arsenal’s record low for number of wins in a season which had stood since 1912/13. The Potters by this point had also lost as many as twenty games at this point of the season (with defeats such as a 0-4 loss to eventual champions Everton away at Goodison Park in November with two goals from former striker Adrian Heath) and as many as nineteen points adrift at the bottom of the table. Such was the defeatism at the Victoria Ground by this point that a crowd of only 7,371 bothered to turn out (around 5,000 lower than the season before).

Arsenal in contrast were in fourth place and eight points off of the top of the table (though having played four games more than leaders Everton). Arsenal were on the receiving end of a shock 0-2 loss to Stoke City. For Stoke however, those would be the final points of the season, as they lost their remaining ten games and thus equalling Arsenal’s record low tally which had stood for seventy two years by this point and would remain until Derby won just one game in 2007/08. It would be a long time before Stoke would play Arsenal again in the League, however Stoke would visit Highbury in the League Cup in November 1987 in which the Gunners would run out 3-0 winners (Michael Thomas missing a twice taken penalty).

Arsenal’s next visit to the Victoria Ground would come in the FA Cup Third Round in January 1990, with Stoke managed by former Arsenal midfielder Alan Ball. Arsenal won the tie 1-0 with a goal from Niall Quinn in his final outing in an Arsenal shirt (he also scored in his first four years earlier) before moving to Man City the following spring. Arsenal’s last visit to the Victoria Ground came at the start of the Arsene Wenger era in October 1996. Mike Sheron opened the scoring for Stoke, however Ian Wright would equalise with the game ending in a 1-1 draw. Stoke would take the lead in the replay at Highbury, however Arsenal ran out 5-2 winners. On Stoke’s last visit to Highbury, the Potters would take the lead, however the Gunners would run out 2-1 winners.

Stoke returned to the Premiership in 2008, with Arsenal’s first visit to Stoke’s new Britannia Stadium. Arsenal were however twice undone by a Rory Delap throw which assisted for goals for Ricardo Fuller and Seyi Olofinjana in which Arsenal fell two goals down. In the final few minutes saw a mindless sending off for Robin Van Persie and a goal for Gael Clichy, however Stoke inflicted a 0-2 defeat on Arsenal. The Gunners’ next appearance in the fourth round of the 2009/10 FA Cup Stoke brought the same dilemma with pretty much the same result, with Arsenal losing 1-3 and exiting the FA Cup.

Arsenal would get their revenge six weeks later with a 3-1 win away at Stoke in the League (the first since January 1982), however would lose Aaron Ramsey to an horrific injury. In May 2011, just one week prior to Stoke’s FA Cup Final against Man City, they would meet Arsenal at the Britannia Stadium which led to 1-3 defeat by the Gunners. Toward the end of the 2011/12, a 1-1 draw between Stoke and Arsenal, saw the Stoke fans attempt the World record for the biggest ever Arsene Wenger impression, at the start of 2012/13 Arsenal would travel away to Stoke for the second league fixture of 2012/13, which ended in a 0-0 draw.

In 2013/14, Arsenal visited Stoke at the start of March, just one point behind Chelsea. However the gap extended to four after Stoke inflicted a 0-1 defeat on the Gunners with a Jonathon Walters penalty. Even less joy came last December, as Arsenal fell three goals down by half time. The second half saw a fightback of sorts from Arsenal, however Stoke inflicted a 2-3 defeat on the Gunners and the infamous barracking of Arsene Wenger on boarding a train out of Stoke.

And so on to Sunday. Arsenal’s all-time record away at Stoke out of forty eight visits, have only ever brought eleven Arsenal wins over one hundred and eleven years, with Stoke winning twenty and seventeen draws. Arsenal’s troubles with obtaining an away win at Stoke obviously didn’t begin with Wenger, however with a failure to hold out for three points on Wednesday – as well as Leicester closing the gap in the title race and Man City just three points away – there can no room for error at all this weekend.

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