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Manchester City is just a season removed from accomplishing a treble but a lot of things have changed since then. Kevin De Bruyne suffered a groin injury which screwed up some of Pep Guardiola's plans in the season. Now, their captain rejoined Phil Foden and Erling Haaland so that they can put out a statement in the Premier League. However, it did not come easily as Mikel Arteta's Arsenal were in their way.
There are still nine games left for Manchester City to play in the Premier League. However, Pep Guardiola seems to be following an underdog mindset heading into the last stretch of the season. He even had to give his flowers to the two other sides leading the race, via Rob Dawson of ESPN.
“Whoever is first is the favorite, second is Arsenal and we are third. It's not in our hands. All we can do is think of Aston Villa. If you are top of the league, like we've been before, you are favorites,” the Manchester City head honcho declared.
Pep Guardiola's squad was not at all out of contention when they faced Mikel Arteta. They had possession in 72% of the whole match and just suffocated the Arsenal defense. Their 700 passes with an 88% pass accuracy were a big help to their dominant run. But, they just could not convert despite having guys like Kevin De Bruyne, Erling Haaland, Phil Foden, and Mateo Kovacic. Manchester City had all the opportunities to close out with 12 shots and seven corner kicks but it was just not fate. Arsenal cleared their point of attack 24 times in this fixture.
The only thing the Manchester City manager could do after ending the game in a scoreless draw was joke about how good the Arsenal defense was.
“Kill someone. Play with nine. They defend well and a lot, surrounding Erling. They defended well with a lot of people. There are different ways. They did well with the press and then after the block. The main target is not to concede and they did it. We didn't create much but our intention was there,” Guardiola said.
Arsenal stays content after the draw vs. Manchester City
This outcome may have come as a shock to many fans. Manchester City absolutely demolished Arsenal the last time they met with a 4 to 1 scoreline. It might even explain why Mikel Arteta was happy despite just pulling off a draw.
“You want to win the game, you prepare to win it but if you cannot win it, make sure you draw it. We did that. Eleven months ago we were here and the story was very different. You have to take steps as a team and today we've done that… It shows you the commitment of every player, the discipline they showed, and how they compete. One thing is to play a football match and another one is to compete in it,” Arteta said.
Both of these teams will still have the opportunity to duke it out in the Champions League. Will the Erling Haaland-led squad win it if their chances of reclaiming victory in the Premier League fizzle out?
