Arsenal drew 1–1 with Manchester City on Sunday, bringing an end to the latest round of Premier League action in a curious game for both sides.
Mikel Arteta got William Saliba, Bukayo Saka and Ben White back fit for the game, but was still missing Martin Ødegaard. As such, the Arsenal manager kept his midfield the same from their Champions League win over Athletic Club. A trio bereft of creativity looked to stymy Man City early, though that didn’t go to plan.
The Gunners found themselves behind nine minutes in with essentially Man City’s first attack of the game. The visitors ruthlessly thrust forward in transition with Tijjani Reijnders finding Erling Haaland on the edge of the box. The Norwegian made a simple touch into the area and clinically beat David Raya.
Man City grew further into the game while seeing more of the ball. Reijnders, Rodri and Phil Foden imposed themselves pressing high out of possession as well. The Cityzens were content to frustrate their opposition out of possession, disrupting the game state. Arsenal lacked the offensive tempo to put City under consistent threat. When they did, the hosts looked more dangerous, but it was few and far between in the first half.
Noni Madueke had the best chance for the Gunners in first-half stoppage time, firing an effort at Gianluigi Donnarumma which forced the Italian into a save at his near post. Viktor Gyökeres once again struggled for service.
Arteta made two substitutions at halftime, bringing on Eberechi Eze and Saka. A more positive start saw Arsenal on the front foot, though they still found it hard to beat Donnarumma. Pep Guardiola reinforced his defence, unashamedly content to try and see out the result in a low block. Gabriel Martinelli was also introduced late along with Ethan Nwaneri, but Guardiola countered with John Stones.
With just five minutes left in stoppage time, Eze finally unlocked the Man City back line with a deft ball over the top. Martinelli got on the end of the chipped pass and was able to lob it over Donnarumma to rescue a point.
The happiest of the bunch will be Liverpool as two of their perceived title contenders dropped points on the same day.
Arsenal Player Ratings vs. Man City (4-3-3)
Subs not used: Kepa Arrizabalaga (GK), Ben White, Myles Lewis-Skelly, Christian Nørgaard
Player of the Match: William Saliba
Manchester City (4-1-4-1): Gianluigi Donnarumma; Abdukodir Khusanov, Rúben Dias, Joško Gvardiol, Nico O’Reilly; Rodri; Bernardo Silva, Phil Foden, Tijjani Reijnders, Jérémy Doku; Erling Haaland
Subs: James Trafford (GK), John Stones, Matheus Nunes, Nathan Aké, Rico Lewis, Divine Mukasa, Nico González, Oscar Bobb, Savinho
READ THE LATEST ARSENAL NEWS, TRANSFER RUMORS AND MORE
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Arsenal Player Ratings vs. Manchester City: Martinelli Rescues Point in 1–1 Draw.
