Let’s take a look at the Player Ratings from the Premier League match between Arsenal and Manchester City at the Emirates Stadium.
Rodri scored Manchester City’s latest winning goal in the Premier League since 2018 to help the Citizens seal a 2-1 comeback win over a 10-man Arsenal.
Despite manager Mikel Arteta being in isolation after a positive COVID-19 test, Arsenal made an excellent start. The Gunners were able to neutralize Man City during the opening period, restricting the visitors to mostly half-chances at best.
In fact, for only the fourth time this season, Pep Guardiola’s men failed to get a single shot on target in the first half of a Premier League game.
Thomas Partey, for one, played a key part in this aspect. The Ghanaian pressed well, made some smart tackles, and helped out in the attack as well. He even almost set up Gabriel Martinelli for a goal.
But it was Bukayo Saka who put the home side ahead past the half-hour mark. The winger cooly slotted Kieran Tierney’s cross into the bottom of the net for his sixth league goal of the season, and his fourth in three games.
1-0 up, and arguably the better of the two sides, Arsenal’s game plan had worked to perfection going into the break.
20 – Aged 20 years, 118 days, Bukayo Saka is the second-youngest Arsenal player to score a @premierleague goal against the reigning champions, after Nicolas Anelka v Manchester United in November 1997 (18y 240d). Unscripted. pic.twitter.com/DuFZP4deQv
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) January 1, 2022
Gunners undone in disastrous second half
In the second half, however, things quickly fell apart in dramatic fashion.
Arsenal had a decent start, but couldn’t double their advantage after Martinelli scuffed a big chance from a corner. Their inability to finish the game paved a way back for City, with an assist from VAR.
Referee Stuart Attwell overturned his decision to not award the Citizens a penalty in the 57th-minute after video replays showed that Granit Xhaka tugged Bernardo Silva’s shirt after contact in the box.
Riyad Mahrez silenced a booing crowd at the Emirates by sending Arsenal keeper Aaron Ramsdale the wrong way to equalize from the spot.
Gabriel then left the hosts down to 10-men after picking up a second yellow card for blocking Gabriel Jesus just two minutes later, before Rodri struck an injury-time winner in the 93rd-minute for Man City.
Guardiola’s side, who remain on top of the Premier League table with an 11-point lead, hope to extend their winning run to 12 matches in Friday’s visit to Swindon Town in the third round of the FA Cup.
Arsenal, on the other hand, will remain in fourth for this weekend but must now prepare to face Liverpool in an EFL Cup semi-final clash on Thursday.
Player ratings
Arsenal: Ramsdale (6); Tomiyasu (6), White (6), Gabriel (3), Tierney (6); Partey (7), Xhaka (3); Saka (7), Odegaard (6), Martinelli (5); Lacazette (6).
Bench: Holding (6), Elneny (6), Smith-Rowe (6).
Manchester City: Ederson (7); Cancelo (6), Dias (6), Laporte (6), Ake (7); Silva (7), Rodri (7), De Bruyne (6); Mahrez (7), Jesus (6), Sterling (7).
Bench: Gundogan (6).
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