Gabriel Martinelli scored a late deflected goal to sink the Sky Blues
Arsenal’s Gabriel Jesus celebrate
Manchester City suffering back-to-back Premier League defeats under Pep Guardiola is a complete rarity, however that is the current crisis the defending champions are living through after falling to a 1-0 defeat to Arsenal.
The Emirates Stadium was able to enjoy a potentially huge victory over their title-rivals on Sunday, with the hosts scoring in the 86th minute of play.
In truth, it had been a forgettable match of football with the major flashpoints coming in the first-half, however Arsenal fans will be delighted that their recent awful run against Manchester City has come to an end.
Two defeats to the Blues in the league last season ultimately cost Arsenal the title, and they were not going to allow that to happen again.
Injuries, fixture congestion and overconfidence appear to have taken hold within Guardiola’s squad, although there were some surprises in Guardiola’s team selection.
Arsenal players celebrate
The match started with Arsenal under a lot of pressure. David Raya looked nervous in goal and the visitors were trying to put him under tremendous pressure.
Julian Alvarez almost scored by blocking a rushed clearance from Raya, but the ball bounced fortuitously wide of the Arsenal goal.
The match could have turned midway through the first-half when Mateo Kovacic made a poor challenge on the halfway line.
Michael Oliver initially showed him a yellow card, but VAR looked over the incident to see if it was a challenge worthy of a sending off.
The Croatian was overly forceful and late in his challenge, and could have seen red on another day, but he was given a reprieve.
If this was an understandable decision, then what happened minutes later wasn’t. Kovacic was again late, making virtually the exact same challenge on Declan Rice, yet Olivier resisted pressure to dismiss the former Real Madrid midfielder.
Manchester City’s Erling HaarlandDANIEL HAMBURYEFE
Manchester City lacked cutting edge
Rarely do you accuse Manchester City of lacking attacking firepower, yet their seemed unsure of how to break down Arsenal’s defense in the second-half.
Erling Haaland’s participation in the game was virtually non-existent, although the Blues will have complaints of their own regarding the officiating.
Rico Lewis burst through Arsenal’s midfield and was fouled, however he somehow was able to bounce back to his feet and place the ball beyond Raya and into the net.
The referee indicated the whistle had already been blown, but replays showed that no Arsenal defenders stopped playing, and City could have been given an advantage.
In the 86th minute, the winning goal finally came. With both teams appearing to be settling for a draw, Gabriel Martinelli teed up a curling shot for the far corner, yet the ball clipped Nathan Ake’s leg, wrongfooted Ederson and ended up in the back of the net, sending Arsenal to the top of the Premier League alongside Tottenham Hotspur.