Soccer-Hughes hopes Stoke will end Emirates jinx

Dec 9 (Reuters) - Manager Mark Hughes is aware of Stoke City's poor record at the Emirates Stadium but the 53-year-old is confident his team would break the duck when they take on Arsenal in Saturday's Premier League match. Stoke have visited Arsenal eight times in the league since their promotion in 2008 and have always returned without a point. Hughes cited their 1-1 draws at Manchester United in October and Chelsea in March and said his team is capable of ending a similar jinx against the league's second-placed team. "It's going to be a tough task, we haven't done great there in the past," he told the club website (www.stokecityfc.com). "Obviously in the past as a club we've struggled to get results at places like Old Trafford and Stamford Bridge but we've been able to do that in recent times." "This is the only one left standing so it would be great to get it out the way. Our recent form is good and we're in good heart so confidence is high... we'll be able to benefit from that." Stoke have won five times and drawn once in their last seven games and are currently ninth, having seen off Burnley 2-0 last weekend. "You do have to be a little bit careful because if you're overconfident and you overextend yourself against good teams then you can come unstuck," the Welshman added. "The key is that we remain solid and in a position to be able to win the game, clearly they are going to have opportunities in terms of the possession that they have." "It's up to us to restrict them to minimal chances and make sure we're creating chances when going the other way." (Reporting by Debanjan Bose in Bengaluru; editing by Amlan Chakraborty)