- Man City beat Arsenal 2-1 at the Etihad
- Rayan Cherki sees the scoresheet again
- City are closer to the title
Manchester City secured a 2-1 victory over Arsenal in a tightly contested encounter, with Erling Haaland’s second-half strike proving decisive after a back-and-forth battle at the Etihad.
The game started on a messy note for Arsenal. In the opening minutes, goalkeeper David Raya took a bad first touch, which was cleared just before Erling Haaland could make his way.
Despite being on the back foot early, Man City later changed the momentum. Rayan Cherki got a go at the goal, but Gabriel Magalhães placed his shoulder in the way. It almost looked like a handball, which ended up hitting the side post. Raya collected the ball before any danger could be posed.
After a clearance from Arsenal in the 15th minute, Mathues Nunes got his chest on the ball, dropping it for Cherki. The Frenchman then skipped through three players and placed it in the bottom left corner.
However, Nunes then found himself on the opposite end. The Portuguese international passed a throw-in to Gianluigi Donarumma, who took one extra second on the ball. Donnarumma tried to make a pass, but Kai Havertz directed the ball into the net with an interception.
The remainder of the first half saw no big chances. Bernardo Silva would’ve closed the half with a goal directly off a corner, but William Saliba kept it out with a header.
Half-time: Manchester City 1-1 Arsenal
Haaland seals the deal in the second half
The opening minutes of the second-half saw Silva on another corner. After a block from Raya, Abdukodir Khusanov has a go at the goal, which was blocked by Gabriel Martinelli. Then the ball landed in Haaland’s legs, who smashed it into the post.
Later, a long ball from Rodri found Jeremy Doku, but the latter’s first touch dropped into Raya’s hands. The goalkeeper had actually slipped on his way back to the line. A minute after Doku’s bad first touch, Khusanov denied Havertz as the defender held still in the striker’s way.
Donnarumma made a comeback in the 59th minute with a double save. Marc Guehi gave away the ball, which led to the chance in the first place. Soon after, Eberechi Eze struck the inside of the post as City were lucky not to concede here.
Donnarumma didn’t let his first-half mistake get him down. The Italian quickly started an attack after he saw Nico O’Reilly free on the left flank. The Englishman played a one-two and made a low cross, which met Rodri. The Ballon d’Or winner tried to make a difference, but it was Haaland who found the net.
Likewise, the battle between Haaland and Gabriel was in the spotlight twice. The defender first tore the Norwegian’s undershirt, and later the duo smashed heads after Gabriel overcommitted on Haaland during an attempted clearance.
Full-time: Manchester City 2-1 Arsenal
The war has not yet been won
Despite today’s win against the Gunners, City still have six games to go. Arsenal, on the other hand, have one fewer, but the chances that they fumble these are low.
The Sky Blues have comparatively harder fixtures, and only maintaining current form will let them have a chance at the title.
Arteta will be hoping to put this game behind him. The pressure is even greater on the Gunners now, with no margin for error for the title favourites.
