Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has reserved special praise for new signing Nacho Monreal, after the full-back had come through a demanding debut against Stoke on Saturday.
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Monreal was asked to debut in the 1-0 home win over the Potters, arguably the hardest physical test in the Premier League, just days after signing from La Liga side Malaga.
Wenger, though, was more than happy with what he saw from his new left-back, who slotted seamlessly into the back line as he deputised for the injured Kieran Gibbs.
"There's no better culture shock than Stoke when you come from Spain, because of course they have a very physical game, and I think Monreal dealt well with it," the Frenchman said after the game.
"The satisfaction is that Monreal had a good start for a player who just arrived yesterday and is in the team today. He had no time to think about it, but overall I felt he got stronger and stronger during the game."
The Gunners boss, meanwhile, dismissed the doubts surrounding Lukas Podolski's deflected free-kick winner, after referee Chris Foy overruled his assistant in the awarding of the goal.
"I haven't seen it from the bench what happened," Wenger added. "I thought the linesmen had given offside, I couldn't see anything else, or maybe somebody from us had handled the ball, that's all I could think.
"But in fact I have heard that Walcott was offside but he was not interfering with the game, then it's a normal goal."
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