Gabriel Martinelli's early-to-the-minute equalizer helped Arsenal regain 1 point in the 1-1 draw with Manchester City at Emirates Stadium.
Before that, Erling Haaland's first-half goal seemed to be enough to ensure an important victory for Pep Guardiola's team. However, Arsenal's bench strength once again proved their influence. Martinelli shined after entering the field with a goal in the 93rd minute, bringing a valuable equalizer to the home team.
Man City's defense was once famous for its solidity, but Arsenal still controlled the ball for most of the match and created many opportunities. Haaland's goal was the result of a rare attack, while Arsenal had to wait until the final minutes to put the ball into the net.
Arsenal shows courage but misses resounding victory
After an explosive summer in the transfer market, Arsenal have a squad with enough depth to compete with any opponent. Therefore, this match is considered an opportunity for the "Gunners" to affirm their championship ambition. Especially after the defeat to Liverpool, they could not lose more points against Man City.
In the first half, Arsenal played quite weakly, only having one shot on target. They lacked inspiration and struggled against City's four-man defence, failing to find a way to create space.
The midfield is not creative, and The Gunners' attack is not sharp. Noni Madueke has often been held back close to the cross, despite his commendable efforts.
In the second half, Arteta's changes - bringing on Bukayo Saka and Eberechi Eze - brought new vitality to Arsenal. However, The Citizens' defense is still playing solidly, causing many difficulties for Viktor Gyokeres, who has almost no clear chance to take advantage.
Finally, the strength from the bench helped the "Gunners" get an equalizer. Martinelli created a decisive breakthrough in the final minutes of the match. However, what makes Arteta worried is that Arsenal have to wait too late to break Man City's solid defense.
Haaland is now a complete striker
Remember that former Manchester United captain Roy Keane once criticized Erling Haaland for "like a League Two player". These comments were made in March 2024, after Haaland's poor performance at Man City. At the time, Keane was not the only one who thought the striker needed to contribute more to the club.
However, Haaland always knows how to score, and he has done it so much that even a strict coach like Pep Guardiola has to sympathize. Simply because he could decide the match with just one moment of genius.
But now, Haaland has developed comprehensively, both as a player and a striker. The goal in the 9th minute at Emirates Stadium showed the Norwegian international's new potential.
Haaland started his attack at home by winning the ball and passing it to Tijjani Reijnders before speeding up, leaving Gabriel behind. Reijnders returned the ball to Haaland, and the 25-year-old striker only touched one beat before crushing David Raya with his right foot. This is the type of goal that Haaland probably couldn't have achieved 18 months ago, when Keane had criticized him.
The excellence of Donnarumma
From the start, Arsenal fans did not like Gianluigi Donnarumma. Despite being continuously scolded, Donnarumma remains incredibly calm. In the end, he received a yellow card in the 75th minute after an hour-long situation. However, this performance shows that his strong spirit has helped him become one of the best goalkeepers in the world.
Donnarumma is also a calm support for the defenders ahead. Man City have Abdukodir Khusanov at right-back and Nico O'Reilly at left-back on the opposite side of the 4-man defense. When warming up, Donnarumma focused on punching the ball, flying people to break the crosses - a sign of preparation for the frequent attacks from Arsenal.
This skill was clearly shown when Arsenal's corners were continuously pointed at Man City's goal, and Donnarumma repeatedly excellently pushed the ball out. However, Arsenal's equaliser put him in a difficult situation when Martinelli took advantage of the space to score.
