Draw at Man City a sure sign 'remarkable' Arsenal can win the title

Adrian Kajumba analyses the 2-2 draw between Manchester City and Arsenal.

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As he celebrated on the Etihad Stadium pitch after pipping Arsenal to last season’s title, Pep Guardiola was not allowing himself to get too carried away with overcoming the Gunners and his protege Mikel Arteta.

“We get the message, we know they will be there for many years,” he said.

“Young manager with big talent - they sent us a message that you have to be careful for the next few years.

“Before it was Liverpool who pushed us to our limits. Now it's been [Arsenal] in these last two seasons, especially this one.” 

Their first meeting since then will only have underlined Guardiola’s belief about just how big a challenge Arsenal now provide to Man City’s dominance.

Man City do not lose at the Etihad Stadium these days. The last time they did was almost two years ago against Brentford in November 2022. 

They have not come much closer to doing so since than they did against Arsenal on Sunday. 

The Gunners, who have become Man City’s nearest challengers as runners-up in each of the last two seasons, were seconds away from what would surely have been Arteta’s best win in charge of Arsenal had they held on.

Following a dramatic first half, Arsenal led 2-1 but went in at the break down to 10 men following Leandro Trossard’s dismissal for two bookings.

Understandably, at a numerical disadvantage, they spent the second half, which lasted just a few minutes shy of an hour, with their goal under siege and camped inside their own final third.

Despite that they were frustrating City, limiting them to long-range shots and mainly from defenders Kyle Walker, Ruben Dias and Manuel Akanji too.

Arsenal’s organisation, resilience and refusal to buckle was remarkable. There was seemingly no way through. 

“We were looking at one of the best 45-minute defensive performances you will see in the Premier League,” former Arsenal midfielder Paul Merson said.

Arteta considered it a “miracle” Arsenal had got that far without their defence being breached. 

But then John Stones reacted quickest when Mateo Kovacic’s late shot deflected his way, firing the loose ball into the roof of the net to break Arsenal’s second-half resistance in the eighth minute of added time. 

Arsenal’s players sunk to the floor as Stones wheeled away. 

Inevitably, mixed in with immense pride at his side’s dogged defiance and conviction that they had "made another big step today as a team and individually", there was disappointment for Arsenal and Arteta having come so close to a first league win at Man City since 2015. 

He said: "The boys were really gutted. They put their heart and souls into every single action and to be punished in the last minute, they were gutted."

Only their second Premier League point at City in their last 10 visits was almost so much more.

As a statement of intent, Arsenal could not have made a bigger one than going to the home of the champions and winning.

They ultimately came up short but still made another big impression on Guardiola.

“They are the biggest contender in the last two years,” he said. “They are exceptional and we know it. They are able to do many, many good things. 

"We had the passion to fight like in the last two years against the team who want to steal our Premier League.”

Coming so early in the season, this match was never going to be defining in terms of the final destination of the title or proving whether Arsenal will do that this season. 

The main thing recent history suggests is that the eventual champions do not lose the opening match-up of the season against the side who end up finishing second.

Only once in the last seven seasons, when Man City have cemented their position in the top two under Guardiola, have the champions lost such a fixture. That was last year when they were beaten 1-0 at Arsenal.

In that sense, both Man City and Arsenal can take some encouragement from avoiding defeat.

Premier League

Position Pos	Club	Played Pl	GD	Points Pts
1	Man City MCI	5	+8	13
2	Liverpool LIV	5	+9	12
3	Aston Villa AVL	5	+3	12
4	Arsenal ARS	5	+5	11

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Man City v Arsenal rivalry goes up a gear

The one conclusion that can certainly be drawn from events today is that the Premier League's latest top-of-the-table rivalry, between sides led by two managers now having to put their long-standing friendship to one side, has gone up a notch.

From the opening exchanges at Man City, when Kai Havertz collided with Rodri and Erling Haaland with William Saliba, there was an edge to this fiery fixture which was present right until the finish.

Guardiola said: “We created a good rivalry with Liverpool and Jurgen [Klopp] before Arsenal and now it is there in a different way.” 

Stones said: “For the past few years we’ve had a rivalry that’s been growing, one that we thrive off and always want to come out on top in.

“So to sit here with a point is difficult, especially at home. We always want to come away with three but how we managed the game and came away with a vital point in the late stages of the game is something we should be proud of.”

Arteta added: “It’s a really healthy competition. Two teams that love winning, that are challenging each other and you can feel that tension and passion and emotion in the game.”