Yossi: Robin is like Torres

Acclaim has already been lavished on Robin van Persie from just about every angle imaginable this season, yet Yossi Benayoun has still managed to bestow another plaudit on his Arsenal team-mate.

Another game, another goal for the newly-crowned PFA and FWA Footballer of the Year, who took his tally to 35 for the campaign to cancel out Peter Crouch’s Stoke opener in another fiercely-contested battle between these two sides.

Benayoun has been so impressed by the forward that he has compared him to the hugely prolific Fernando Torres he played alongside at Liverpool. The Spaniard scored 72 goals during their three seasons together at Anfield.

“I have been lucky to play with some of the great strikers in my career and Robin is currently one of the best in the world,” said on-loan Benayoun, who could be back playing with Torres at parent club Chelsea next season.

“It’s the same as when Fernando was on fire at Liverpool. They are very similar because you can look at their record of scoring goals.

“They are at the same level — two of the best strikers in the world. I think Robin is now above any other player in the Premier League. He has been the main man this season.”

Arsene Wenger, the Arsenal manager, conceded Van Persie has had to shoulder too much of the third-placed Gunners’ goal-scoring burden this term.

But, with Champions League football still to be assured, he has urged his most valuable player, whom they hope to tie down to a new deal this summer, to summon the strength for one final effort.

“He has to push us over the line now,” Wenger said. “We have two games to go and I concede we have been over-relying on him in terms of goalscoring, but that’s difficult to change now until the end of the season.”

Having found themselves on the back foot early on, Stoke’s ninth-minute opener came as a surprise, former Spurs striker Crouch rising highest to head Matthew Etherington’s cross low into the bottom-right corner.

Amusingly, the Potters faithful greeted the goal with chants of ‘1-0 to the rugby team’ and ‘Swing low’ following Wenger’s previous claims Tony Pulis’ team use “rugby-style” tactics.

Within six minutes the home crowd had been silenced though, as Van Persie stole in at the far post to convert another teasing Tomas Rosicky delivery.

From there, the game struggled to maintain its early momentum.

The main incident surrounded Benayoun, who saw two penalty claims waved away by referee Chris Foy when he went to ground following challenges by Ryan Shawcross and Glenn Whelan.

Wenger vented his frustrations from the touchline, prompting much mocking from the Stoke supporters, whom he also criticised afterwards for their booing of Aaron Ramsey, who suffered a horrific double leg fracture at the Britannia Stadium in 2010.

“You know that exists in the stadiums and I can’t stop it,” Wenger reflected. “It exists everywhere [in every country]. Maybe in England it’s a bit more passionate because the fans are more passionate here but the hate exists in France too. With Paris St Germain and Marseille there is hate too.

“But this is one of the places where you get a big amount of hate.”

Stoke threatened in the dying moments with Bacary Sagna required to make a superb acrobatic clearance after a Rory Delap long throw had caused panic in the Gunners penalty area.

Wenger said: “Overall it was still a valuable point because we showed great battling qualities that we have not always shown here.”

Stoke sit 14th but a top-half finish is not beyond them with ninth-placed Fulham just three points clear.

Captain Ryan Shawcross said: “We hope to achieve a position which underlines how far we have come in a short time.”