Monreal - Early goal set up victory

Nacho Monreal believes the timing of Arsenal’s first goal was vital for Sunday's dominant performance against Stoke City.

The Gunners got off to a perfect start when Laurent Koscielny opened the scoring after six minutes and Alexis Sanchez struck either side of half-time to secure the three points.

In the reverse fixture it was Stoke who struck first, and once again an early goal set the tempo for the rest of the game.

“When you score the first goal in the first few minutes, the game is easier,” Monreal told Arsenal Player. “It’s open for you, you have more chances and I think in every moment we had control of the game.

“We know they are a strong team with good players up front like Peter Crouch and Jonathan Walters, but I think we played really well. We had a great game, we scored three goals and we could have scored more, so we are really happy.

“When 11 players help in defence, of course it’s easier for the defenders. I think this is very important for us and we need to play every game really compact.”

Monreal is confident the Gunners’ second successive clean sheet will help them build momentum going into Sunday’s game against Premier League champions Manchester City.

“It’s a really difficult game,” said Monreal. “We’re playing against one of the best teams in the Premier League away. We know that last season we lost 6-3 against them away, so in this case we have the chance to [get revenge] and stay high in the table.”