Arsenal 0-1 Man City: 6 talking points as Gunners prove no match for elected champions

Manchcester City claimed an 18th straight victory as they revived in a routine 1-0 win over Arsenal in north London.

City wasted little time getting in stride at Emiraes Stadium and scored the winning goal within the opening two minutes.

Pep Guardiola’s men had already given notice of their intentions in the first 60 seconds, only for Raheem Sterling to kick badly when an opportunity opened up.

But the England star was right in the second round, standing up to wave a Riyad Mahrez cross after finding space just six yards from goal.

City look like they are playing a different game than their Premier League rivals right now, and they dictated and dominated the opening 20 minutes, a period during which they created opportunities to double their advantage, but were lacking in the killer touch.

Gradually, Arsenal played their way back into contention, but failed to test Ederson before the break.

Kevin de Bruyne’s return almost came home with a brazen winning chip to double the lead early in the second half, only for the Belgian’s effort to drift off the wrong side of Bernd Leno’s left post .

Still, as City continued to offer more threats, their level of performance dropped noticeably in the second half, with midfield rotations and passes not as sharp as they had been. It was sloppy and gave Arsenal greater conviction that they could stop City’s winning run.

Emile Smith Rowe and Alexandre Lacazette entered the fray with 17 minutes remaining, replacing the calm Martin Odegaard and Nicolas Pepe, with Arteta turning to his bench in his quest for more oomph and incision.

But City kept them at bay throughout and ultimately secured another victory.

The chosen champions continue to march. Here are six talking points from the Emirates …

1. Arteta’s pragmatic approach

After being in Europa League action on Thursday night, Mikel Arteta made five changes to Arsenal’s side who drew 1-1 with Benfica in Rome.

They meet the Portuguese side in Athens this week in the second leg of their last 32 game, and while he won’t admit it, the changes here suggest that this much more winnable encounter played a reasoning in his changes. .

And, in truth, such is the quality and form of this side of City – who themselves sounded the changes ahead of their return to European action this week – can you blame Arteta for taking the lazy approach? more pragmatic?

Arsenal started the game 11 points behind the top four. Yes, they want to be back in the Champions League as soon as possible, but maybe the Europa League is their best bet.

2. Of all Arsenal defenders to exploit, City pick Tierney

When you watch Arsenal and Kieran Tierney start from the left-back, opponents usually focus their attacks on their right side. That’s how good the Scotsman has been (when in form) since arriving from Celtic in 2019 and because the parties are more keen to exploit Hector Bellerin.

City didn’t do that here and just went to Tierney from the start.

Four times in the first five minutes, the sweep diagonals went from left to right towards Mahrez; Each time, the Algerian was able to shoot him down and run over his man, one of those leading to Sterling’s first goal.

Tierney is, defensively, kind of a throwback to the old-fashioned full-backs who as play develops on the opposite side cover the blind side of their center-backs.

Apparently, this is something City had noticed and, as he may have overcompensated and got too close to Pablo Mari, Mahrez was able to maintain the width – as he does so well – and stand free. in the space to receive the game switches.

After his recent injury, Tierney may not yet be fully aware. Perhaps this period of playing in a back three has had an unprecedented impact on the way he positions himself.

Maybe this impact was not seen by everyone … except Pep Guardiola.

3. De Bruyne’s back

Nothing else. No spiritual word required. It’s just good to see him do what he does best: playing football.

A solid 63 minutes under his belt on his return.

4. The change of arsenal leads to a familiar problem

I wrote in early January about how Arteta tackled Arsenal’s creativity issues, in part by shifting Bukayo Saka from the left side to the right wing.

It had taken them from a relegation battle at Christmas – in Sam Allardyce’s eyes at least – to three successive wins with eight goals scored, and back to 11th.

In fact, the move had propagated Arsenal’s threat and their ability to move the ball up the pitch on the pitch, rather than focusing everything on the left – as Saka and Tierney are their best players when it comes to to create attacks.

So it was strange to see the pair start over at the same time left here. It was not surprising to see a familiar problem arise.

In the opening 45 minutes, Saka and Tierney received 17 assists in the final third. Between them, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Nicolas Pepe and Martin Odegaard received only six.

Both are major assets for this Arsenal side individually. But when paired up, it makes life easier for opponents because they know that if you stop the left side, you practically prevent Arteta’s men from having a major offensive impact.

This meeting, especially in this first half, only offered further proof.

5. Bernardo is back at his best

In his first two years at the Etihad – as City won back-to-back titles – Bernardo Silva was exceptional.

Week after week he was one of Guardiola’s most trusted field lieutenants, his performances never dropping below a 7/10, but more often than not an eight or nine. He mixed his ridiculous ball-on-string talent into being an absolute pressing machine.

However, last season he took a dip. Yes, City as a collective did, but he may have suffered more than any other individual. He’s never been really injured – he made 52 games last season, after 51 and 53 in the previous two years – but it just wasn’t quite the same.

Make no mistake, he’s back to his best now. The little touches and the body slips, the ability to work in difficult places and find the ball that opens the whole game – it’s all here again.

As City look to secure more national and European glory in the months to come, having the best version of Portuguese could prove crucial.

6. Ruben solid as a rock

Let’s be honest here, City never really seemed to concede.

They hardly gave up a chance worthy of being described as such. They kept Arsenal at bay throughout and Ruben Dias was once again exceptional in defense.

What a signature he has been, not only for his own abilities, but also for what has happened alongside him with John Stones.

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