Pep Guardiola's Manchester City won the game against Arteta's Arsenal. The disciple stood up to the teacher with a young and cheeky Arsenal, but experience is a grade and the citizen team did not forgive the tremendous defensive errors that ended up costing the Gunners the game. "For us, the challenge is to reach that level," said Arteta in the preview about the mentor Guardiola's team, and although he was close to him, the Basque will have to wait to have his revenge.
City is the new leader of the Premier, although with one more game over Arsenal, who after the defeat against Everton and the draw against Brentford had seen their advantage over the sky blues reduced by just three points.
The clash between the two kings of the Premier did not disappoint. The Arsenal of the disciple Arteta displayed that daring that has taken him to the top and was not intimidated by the maestro Guardiola. With an electric start, he snatched the ball from an uncomfortable City, unaccustomed to this type of rival, and who suffered when the ball came out.
With a lot of dispute, but few chances, the minutes went by until at 22' Nketiah missed the best chance for the Gunners. The forward finished practically alone in the small area, but sent the header inexplicably out of it. And as if it were an unwritten football law, the dedicated fans of the Emirates went from joy to absolute silence in just two minutes. Tomiyasu gave way back for Ramsdale, but did not see that Kevin De Bruyne came at full speed, who took the ball and with a beautiful chip, defined above the Gunner goalkeeper to put City in the lead.
The Japanese defender tried to make amends shortly after with a shot that would go over the goal. The Emirates continued to push a daring team that did not give up despite the goal, aware that it had been capable of putting the citizen team in difficulties for many minutes.
And then it happened (albeit with some luck). Nketiah started the run into Ederson's box, who came out to stop him with no time to avoid his direct shot on the goal line, where Aké appeared to save City. But the great intervention of the Dutch footballer would be without effect when Anthony Taylor raised his hands to the whistle and signaled a rigorous penalty considering that there was a foul by the goalkeeper in the clash with Nketiah. Bukayo Saka grabbed the ball, completely fooled Ederson, who had beaten the right flank, and adjusted it at the other post to tie the score before the break.
With hardly any time to get comfortable in the seats, Taylor called a penalty in favor of City for a hold by Gabriel on Haaland. But the VAR reviewed the action and it ended up annulled for the Norwegian's offside in a decision that was celebrated by the Gunner fans as if it were a goal.
The citizen team took a step forward and with intense pressure when the ball came out they tried to suffocate the rival by chaining dangerous chances. Much better in the second half, City were rewarded for their effort in the 72nd minute, again thanks to an inexcusable mistake in defense and again with Tomiyasu intervening with the worst of luck, deflecting Grealish's shot just enough for Ramsdale failed to prevent City's goal. Guardiola's men took the lead on the scoreboard and would no longer give up their income. Arsenal, unable to keep up with their rivals and penalized for serious defensive errors, went from more to less and Haaland, in minute 82, sentenced the game that places City as the leader of the Premier.
