Arsenal 2-2 Man City – An incredible game despite City’s late equaliser

Ten-man Arsenal put on an amazing play at the Etihad Stadium for the first time since 2015, but they had to settle for a point due to a late equaliser from John Stones.

Erling Haaland gave the hosts the lead in the ninth minute. But Manchester City suffered a blow when  Rodri was forced off the pitch due to injury in the 21st minute.

Nevertheless, Gunners rallied, and Riccardo Calafiori’s rocket pulled them even. Meanwhile, Gabriel Magalhaes, just like last Sunday against Tottenham, headed into the net from Bukayo Saka’s cornerkick.

However, Arsenal encountered a waterloo towards the end of the first half, when Leandro Trossard was sent off by Referee Michael Oliver for time wasting. Trossard became the second player in the Gunners’ team to be punished for such offense after Declan Rice was sent off against Brighton two weeks ago.

Tussled second half

This forced Arsenal to play the second forty-five minutes with only ten men. Coach Mikel Arteta at the start of the second half sacrificed Bukayo Saka for Ben White to keep the defence intact.

Despite the numerical disadvantage, Arsenal kept the pace and fought relentlessly throughout the second half.

Though they remained strong through all of them, however, John Stones was quick to pull an equaliser to prevent them from claiming a historic victory. An early warning sign saw Ilkay Gundogan spin past Gabriel to set himself up for a volley, which he shanked well wide, but in the ninth minute, they fell behind.

Arsenal were under the cosh in the early stages. Gundogan wrapped a free-kick against the post as City attempted to find a second, but they were dealt a blow when Rodri was forced off with a knee injury after an innocent coming together with Thomas Partey.

The Gunners swiftly capitalised when play resumed, a quickly-taken free-kick from Partey caught City napping. Gabriel Martinelli was able to get to the edge of the box and lay the ball back to Calafiori, who bent a delicious shot into the top corner from 20 yards out that left Ederson clutching thin air.

As a result, the competition evened up, and the gunners had two opportunities to score points towards the end but failed.Gabriel got a hand on a corner whipped into the box, but he could not direct it precisely on goal. This was in stark contrast to his goal against Tottenham a week earlier.

The Brazilian defender then formed a connection with his countryman Martinelli on the left side. The winger then cut the ball back into a dangerous position inside the box, but Trossard, a City defender, exerted pressure and redirected it over the crossbar.

Meanwhile, Arsenal players threw everything at City’s shots and ran themselves into the ground, attempting to hold them at bay.

But Arteta’s defence mechanism shivered in the last minute, as City did manage to squeeze past for an equaliser through John Stones.