Arsenal were denied their first win at the Etihad Stadium with a 98th minute equaliser following yet another controversial red card for a man in red and white.
Following on from a 0-0 draw in their UEFA Champions league opener away at Atalanta on Wednesday night, Arsenal travelled to Manchester with yet again a light squad. Added to the injures that Mikel Arteta already has to deal with, Ben White was unable to start the match due to a slight knock, however was deemed fit enough for the bench. In his absence, Jurrien Timber moved across to right-back, with summer signing Riccardo Calafiori starting on the left-hand side of the back four to make his full debut for Arsenal. Declan Rice also came back into the XI following his suspension.
It was the home side that drew first blood in the contest, Erling Haaland broke through the defence after being played through by Savinho. The gap between Arsenal centre-backs William Saliba and Gabriel was too big and it was way too easy for the Norwegian striker to break through and City’s number nine was never going to miss a chance like that to make it 1-0 after just eight minutes in the game, hitting goal number 100 for City in the process in just his third season in Manchester.
However, a corner not long after saw current Ballon D’or contender Rodri go down in the box with a suspected knee injury. The Spainard didn’t collide with an Arsenal man and the injury was serious enough for him to be forced off with ex-Chelsea midfielder Matteo Kovacic coming into the midfield in his place. The injury for such an important player for City gave Arsenal the boost they needed after a struggling start, and soon after a quick free-kick from Thomas Partey sent Gabriel Martinelli into the final third, the Brazilian squared the ball back to Calafiori who smashed a superb first-time left footed strike into the far top corner to equalise for Arsenal out of absolutely nothing.
And suddenly, Arsenal looked to be the team taking the game to their opponents. An excellent, patient passing move finished with leandro Trossard firing over Ederson’s crossbar. And the Gunners came even closer when a corner from Bukayo Saka found the head of Gabriel at the back post, however this time the Brazilian couldn’t find the back of the net when he really probably should have. However, just minutes later, an almost identical delivery from Saka once again found Gabriel and this time the centre-back smashed his header past his fellow countryman in the Manchester City goal to give Arsenal an unlikely lead with not long of the first half to go. In the process, Arsenal became the first team since Chelsea in 2021 to lead at the Etihad after going behind.
However, just when it seemed all the drama for the first half had concluded, over a minute after the allocated added time, Trossard fouled City winger Jeremy Doku and just seconds after referee Michael Oliver blew his whistle, the Belgian was given a second-yellow card and was sent off. In an almost identical scenario to two weeks ago when Declan Rice was dismissed for the same reason at home versus Brighton. And whilst Trossard should know better, certainly after Rice’s red card, but the amount of time between Trossard’s kick and the whistle being blown, plus Doku not being booked for a similar offence earlier on in the half, makes the red card harsh on Arsenal. And leaving them with a major task on their hands to try and get out of Manchester with a result.
At half-time, Saka was subbed off for White, and Arsenal set up in a 5-4-0 formation, with the focus on defending for their lives. And it looked like it was working, City were struggling to break down the deep block deployed by Mikel Arteta’s team, with most of their shots coming from the edge of the penalty area. Although, David Raya was forced into a strong stop from a header from Haaland, however the Spanish goalkeeper continued his fine form to dive down low to his left and slap the ball away from danger. The minutes ticked on and Arsenal looked more and more likely to pull off an incredible win, despite almost the entire play in the second period being played in the Arsenal half. However, Arsenal continued to hold firm, but just when it looked like they had got over the line, substitute Jack Grealish played the ball to Kovacic who’s shot bounced and deflected into the path of John Stones who hit the ball home and equalised in the final minute to break Arsenal hearts.
It all kicked off after that, as Erling Haaland smashed into Thomas Partey following the kick-off, after needlessly throwing the ball off the head of Gabriel during the equaliser celebrations – and surprisingly didn’t receive a yellow card. The final whistle soon followed, and whilst Arsenal can clearly be gutted after such a late goal took away a famous win, a draw can be seen as a monumental result and the performance and resilience can also be strongly commended.
Bolton at Emirates Stadium follows, as Arsenal look to continue their unbeaten start to the 2024/25 season and progress in the Carabao Cup.
Player Ratings:
David Raya: 8
Jurrien Timber: 9
William Saliba: 8
Gabriel: 9
Riccardo Calafiori: 8
Thomas Partey: 7
Declan Rice: 7
Bukayo Saka: 6
Leandro Trossard: 4
Gabriel Martinelli: 8
Kai Havertz: 7