A game of two halves ensued at the Etihad Stadium as Manchester City completed an inspired comeback against Arsenal to a 2-1 win. Theo Walcott opened the scoring for the visitors in the first half as Wenger's men completely dominated City in the first half. Guardiola’s 'pep' talk in the interval did wonders as City looked like a completely different side in the second half of the game.
Leroy Sane levelled for the hosts as the £37 million signing scored his first Premier League goal since joining from Schalke. City delivered an energetic performance which helped them to a positive result as Raheem Sterling scored a deserving winner as he showed his worth in a must win game for the Citizens.
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Let's take a look at the five talking points from the game between Manchester City and Arsenal:
#1 Pep Guardiola’s team deliver results in the big games
A win over the Gunners puts Manchester City second on the league table, just seven points behind Chelsea. Arsenal capitulated once again in as they surrendered their lead in the second half. City's performance in the first half was abysmal but their resolute showing in the second half was exemplary. There are very few instances when Arsenal play 10 men behind the ball and resort to defensive play like they did against City.
Three points against fellow title contenders was a prerequisite for Guardiola who has faced much criticism in the past month. Though his side doesn't look convincing to challenge the league leaders, Chelsea, a team who are looking like a champion side but one can never write off Pep Guardiola and Manchester City. City played without two of their important first team players yet completely outplayed the team that play football in its finest way.
#2 A game that was won by two exciting youngsters
It was a pretty slow start to the Premier League for Leroy Sane since his move in the summer and it has taken the German some time to adapt to the demands of the Premier League. The youngster, though, has shown his quality in glimpses.
Against Arsenal, it was completely justified as to why Guardiola was so eager to add him to his squad at the Etihad. His run for the goal – which seemed like it was marginally offside – the calm finish and overall quality, showed his prowess on the ball.
Raheem Sterling, on the other hand, has not been used consistently by the manager this season but showed his worth as he scored the winner; a stunning strike, as well. He was dangerous in cutting in from the flank and causing trouble to the Arsenal backline.
#3 Mesut Ozil goes AWOL in a big game again
Arsene Wenger complained about the refereeing decisions in the game and said, “Referees are protected like lions in the zoo," in the game against Manchester City at the Etihad, but the French manager cannot protect the failure of Arsenal's big players against City.
Alexis Sanchez was not his usual self in the 90 minutes, but Mesut Ozil’s performance was unforgivable. The German, who is often criticised for underperforming in the big games, gave his critics more ammunition to target him on his failure to turn up in big games.
Ozil looked jaded and in need of a rest to get back to his usual self. The German was unable to provide a cutting edge to Arsenal's attack and was invisible during a majority of the match and created just one chance in the entire game.
#4 Petr Cech's positioning should be questioned
Cech's age seems to be catching up with him as the Arsenal custodian was expected to stop Sterling's shot, which proved to be the winner in an all-important clash at the top of the table. He was the Arsenal player with the most passes attempted, which reflected Arsenal's poor performance.
Arsene Wenger was left absolutely fuming at the final whistle and shouted at his custodian on the delay of taking the final free-kick. Cech seems to have lost his mojo off late as some of the goals that Arsenal have conceded recently is a shadow of his performance in his prime.
#5 A race for the top four spots spices up
A difference of six points separates the team at the second spot to the team that occupies the sixth position on the league table. Manchester City are second on the table with 36 points whereas rivals, Manchester United, are on 30 points after a 2-1 away win over Crystal Palace. Liverpool are on 34 points with a game in hand, while Spurs are level with the Reds after a last gasp 2-1 win over Burnley.
This was touted as the best title race of all time and it is living up to its expectations as the top six teams are in the running for achieving the top four spots in the league. Chelsea have done exceptionally well to go on a 11 game unbeaten run but the other wolves in the pack are not further behind as a mini league among the top six is underway in the Premier League.
