October 8, 2023, Sunday. 20:28
Arsenal’s first win over Manchester City in the Premier League since 2015. The Gunners’ first victory in the English Championship over the reigning champions since 2017. The championship’s best defense paid off, but despite one goal scored in 94 minutes, the match turned out to be very interesting and eventful.
Saka and Martinelli did not start for Arsenal due to injuries. Bukayo was not included in the list for the fight at all; Gabriel at least ended up on the bench. Before the break, the absence of flank forwards greatly affected the Gunners’ activity in attack. During the entire first half, the hosts squeezed out only one half-chances: Zinchenko found Nketiah with an excellent pass, Eddie moved to the right in the center and fired a shot a few meters from the post. It’s also a stretch to remember two consecutive blocked shots by a Ukrainian from a non-dangerous position. Arsenal did not penetrate into the Manchester City penalty area, did not particularly strain the visiting defenders, and mostly controlled the ball sterilely.
Pep’s team, although they acted mainly from the opponent in the first half of the meeting, created good chances. This is despite the fact that Saliba completely ate Haaland. Already at the beginning of the match, Rice cleared the ball from the ribbon after a shot from Joshko Guardiola, and a few seconds later, in the same attack, Ake shot over the goal from a lethal position. As you know, City knows everything about pressing and even more: how to pass it, and how to press themselves in the final third. Before the break, the “citizens” did not have any problems in either phase. In one of the episodes, Alvarez almost effectively put pressure on Raya – the ball bounced not into the goal, but into the side net.
The main question in the first half or even the entire match is why Kovacic remained on the field? In the middle of the 45-minute period, Mateo drove into Odegaard’s ankle from behind. The Croatian received a yellow card, although VAR reviewed the episode for a red card – sending off would have seemed a fairer decision. However, for some reason Kovacic did not stop there and unpleasantly tripped Rice’s leg. Mateo should have received a second yellow for this violation.
With his aggressive actions, the Croatian reminded us of two important things. Firstly, English arbitrators are unprofessional. Not news, but still. The only way to justify Michael Oliver’s logic is that he decided “not to break the game,” but such excuses are more likely for the poor. And if City had scored and won, would it be possible to say that the referee broke the game by not sending Kovacic off? Same thing. And secondly, a performance like this from Mateo highlights how important Rodri has become as a cog in Guardiola’s system. The Spaniard is still serving a suspension.
Should Kovacic still be on the pitch for Man City after these two tackles? ???? pic.twitter.com/RmUDyFNL7M
— ESPN UK (@ESPNUK) October 8, 2023
It would seem that it was obvious that Pep would replace the Croatian at half-time, however, this did not happen. But Arteta brought Martinelli off the bench instead of Trossard. Gabriel’s appearance significantly strengthened the Gunners’ left flank; Arsenal increased their momentum and played the second half much better than the first. The hosts simply began to play more boldly. All of Manchester City’s attacks were stifled even as they approached the Gunners’ penalty area.
If Arteta got it right with the substitutions, then Pep definitely didn’t. At the end of the second half of the meeting, Stones, Nunez and Doku replaced Lewis, Kovacic and Alvarez. Okay, according to the Croatian, the case is finally closed, but neither John, nor Mateus, nor Jeremy strengthened Manchester City’s game in any way.
In turn, Arteta released Partey, Havertz and Tomiyasu instead of Jorginho, Nketiah and Zinchenko. By the way, the Ukrainian gave a good match, traditionally an excellent contribution to the buildup from Alexander. Arsenal’s goal in the 86th minute was organized solely by those players who appeared during the match: Partey threw it forward to Tomiyasu, he headed it back to Havertz, the German dropped a projectile under Martinelli’s shot, and he hammered the ball into the net with a ricochet from Ake.
By the way, we can and should say that Gabi Jesus is not particularly effective on the right flank, yes, but the Brazilian is forced to cover the position of the injured Bukayo Saka, while Eddie Nketiah does not shine at all in the center of attack. And no matter how much they scold Havertz, you need to understand that if Eddie were in Kai’s place, he would most likely hit, look for an opportunity to shoot, and not pass his partner.
Emirates Stadium erupts ???? pic.twitter.com/5tIsN6EXSu
— Arsenal (@Arsenal) October 8, 2023
However, Haaland probably feels much worse than Nketiah after this match. The Norwegian has not scored for 270 minutes. Today, Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes allowed Erling to touch the ball 23 times and make some 11 accurate passes. Shots on goal from Haaland? Zero.
These two ???? pic.twitter.com/6tqucXmbA3
— Arsenal (@Arsenal) October 8, 2023
Given that City had to be without Kovacic, and the fact that Arsenal came out strong and brave in the second half, the scoreboard is fair. At the international break, Tottenham and Arsenal are leading the Premier League, Spurs are in the lead only thanks to a better goal difference. Manchester City are third.
Man City without Rodri:
❌ 0-1 vs. Newcastle
❌ 1-2 vs. Wolves
❌ 0-1 vs. Arsenal pic.twitter.com/HVyST6WfIB— Football Tweet ⚽ (@Football__Tweet) October 8, 2023
Premier League, 8th round
Stadium: Emirates Stadium (London)
Referee: Michael Oliver (England)
Arsenal – Manchester City 1:0
Goal: Martinelli (86)
Arsenal: Raya – White, Saliba, Gabriel, Zinchenko (Tomiyasu 75) – Odegaard, Jorginho (Party 75), Rice – Jesus, Nketiah (Havertz 75), Trossard (Martinelli 46)
Manchester City: Ederson – Walker, Dias, Ake, Guardiol – Lewis (Stones), Kovacic (Nunez 68) – Bernardo Silva, Alvarez (Doku 68), Foden – Haaland
Warnings: Jorginho (11), Jesus (90+3) – Bernardo Silva (23), Kovacic (29), Ederson (90+3)
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2023-10-08 18:36:22
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