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Manchester City blew Arsenal to smithereens on the opening day of the restarted Premier League season. Mikel Arteta's side started well and showed promise and resolve in the early stages of the game but Arsenal's efforts were undone by a stupendously horrible David Luiz performance.
Both the Premier League giants showed visible signs of rust in the opening stages of the game. The much-hyped fixture looked to be heading towards a stalemate before Manchester City kicked into the gear after the half-hour mark, with David Silva and Kevin De Bruyne pulling the strings in the middle of the park.
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David Luiz horror show hands Manchester City easy victory
Bernd Leno stepped up with a few excellent saves from Riyad Mahrez and Raheem Sterling, before the latter took full toll of an embarrassing mistake from David Luiz to snatch the lead for Manchester City minutes before half-time.
The second half saw Arsenal's Champions League qualification hopes slip further away as David Luiz tore himself out of the Gunners' good books with a challenge on Manchester City's Riyad Mahrez. The Brazilian's lack of awareness reduced Arsenal to 10 men and sealed the game for Manchester City.
Manchester City Player Ratings
Ederson Moraes - 7.5/10
Ederson was rarely troubled in Manchester City's goal and started a few attacks of his own with some exceptional ball distribution. The Brazilian shot-stopper nearly bagged an assist of his own with a brilliant long ball to Riyad Mahrez. Ederson charged out of his penalty area and was involved in a horrific collision with his teammate Eric Garcia.
Kyle Walker - 6.5/10
Kyle Walker was a constant threat down the right flank for Manchester City but failed to deliver the final product today. The English full-back missed a few opportunities to pick out his teammates in the penalty area but put in an assured performance in his own half and did a commendable job against Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
Eric Garcia - 7/10
The young Catalan defender was troubled at times by Nketiah but did well in his outing and gave a good account of himself. Garcia was badly injured in an unfortunate collision with his teammate Ederson and was treated for over eight minutes before being stretchered off the pitch.
Aymeric Laporte - 7/10
Aymeric Laporte had the best possible return he could have asked for and had next to nothing to do in defence. The Manchester City defender's distribution was typically accurate and his performance will have reassured Pep Guardiola's faith in the talented centre-back.
Benjamin Mendy - 5.5/10
Benjamin Mendy will be disappointed with his performance today. The French full-back played the entire game but was unable to get past Hector Bellerin and had little to offer when Manchester City was in possession of the ball.
Ilkay Gundogan - 7.5/10
Ilkay Gundogan's quietly effective performance will not have gone unnoticed by Pep Guardiola. Manchester City's German midfielder expertly marked Joe Willock out of the game and made a crucial intervention to deny Aubameyang a clear-cut opportunity in the dying stages of the game.
David Silva - 8/10
David Silva thoroughly enjoyed his time in Manchester City's midfield today and broke Arsenal's lines with consummate ease. The Spanish veteran puppeteered his attacking teammates with aplomb and cemented his place in Manchester City's midfield.
Kevin De Bruyne - 8.5/10
Barring a shocking first-half error that nearly handed Arsenal the lead, the Belgian midfielder was the best player during his time on the pitch. While Kevin De Bruyne will not be able to claim full credit for Manchester City's first goal, the creative visionary played a few glorious through balls for both Sterling and Mahrez and tormented Arsenal's midfield after a rusty start to the game.
Riyad Mahrez - 6.5/10
Manchester City's Algerian winger was uncharacteristically quiet in the first half and was marked out of the game by a pacy Kieran Tierney. The Manchester City forward was a key player in the second half and his pace and trickery resulted in a penalty for Manchester City as well as a red card for David Luiz.
Gabriel Jesus - 6/10
Gabriel Jesus linked up well with his teammates and was dynamic at the edge of the penalty area but failed to get on the scoresheet tonight. The Manchester City striker will hope to be more prolific in the future.
Raheem Sterling - 8/10
Like most other players on the pitch, Raheem Sterling started the game slowly but grew into his groove as the game progressed. The Manchester City winger's devastating diagonal run forced an error from David Luiz. Sterling slammed the loose ball into the net to bag his first goal of the calendar year.
Substitutes
Phil Foden - 8.5/10
Phil Foden was on the pitch for less than half an hour but was the most noticeable player on the pitch. The young English midfielder teased and tormented Arsenal's midfielders and bagged a well-deserved goal in stoppage-time.
Bernardo Silva - 6.5/10
Bernardo Silva took some time to get going and managed a few good dribbles towards the end of the game. The Portuguese midfielder was unable to make the most of a difficult opportunity in the final stages of the game.
Sergio Aguero - 7/10
Sergio Aguero got some valuable time on the pitch today and was a constant nuisance in the final third. The Argentine striker had two golden opportunities to find the back of the net but failed to hit the target and will hope to be more clinical in the upcoming fixtures.
Rodri - 6.5/10
Rodri came on in the second half for Kevin De Bruyne and did a decent job in the middle of the park. The Spaniard had to fill in as a central defender after Eric Garcia's injury and completed the job for this side.
Fernandinho - 6.5/10
It was business as usual for Fernandinho after he came on for Aymeric Laporte in the second half. The Brazilian pinged passes to his teammates with ease and seemed to enjoy himself the pitch.
Arsenal Player Ratings
Bernd Leno - 8/10
Bernd Leno was the best Arsenal player on the pitch by a country mile. The German shot-stopper made several spectacular saves and prevented Arsenal from suffering abject humiliation. Leno could do nothing about either of the goals and was left stranded by David Luiz on both occasions.
Hector Bellerin - 7/10
Unlike his defensive teammates, Arsenal right-back Hector Bellerin had a decent outing and did not put a foot wrong in his own half. The Spaniard offered very little in the final third but effectively marked Benjamin Mendy out of the game.
Pablo Mari - 6/10
Arsenal's Spanish centre-back Pablo Mari was composed in defence for his short stint on the pitch and was unfortunately injured while tracking Kyle Walker's run early in the first half.
Shkodran Mustafi - 6/10
Shkodran Mustafi was the only centre-back to complete the match. The German defender was reliable for the most part and would have had more to show for his efforts had it not been for two separate brain-fades from his defensive partner.
Kieran Tierney - 6.5/10
Kieran Tierney held his own in the first half against Riyad Mahrez and made a few runs into the opposition's territory. The Arsenal left-back had to slot into central defence after David Luiz received his red card in the second half.
Matteo Guendouzi - 6.5/10
Matteo Guendouzi tried his best to break up Manchester City's fluid gameplay and succeeded on a few occasions. The combination of Kevin De Bruyne and David Silva, however, proved too much of a challenge for the young Arsenal midfielder.
Granit Xhaka - NA
The former Arsenal captain was injured after an awkward fall in the 5th minute and had to be taken off for Dani Ceballos. Mikel Arteta will hope that the Swiss international makes a quick recovery ahead of a hectic schedule.
Bukayo Saka - 6/10
Bukayo Saka was deprived of the ball for a majority of the match. The versatile Arsenal winger did show a few flashes of his brilliance but failed to make an impact on the match.
Joe Willock - 5/10
Joe Willock was virtually anonymous in midfield and struggled to wrest control of the midfield from Ilkay Gundogan and Kevin De Bruyne. The young midfielder was frequently overrun in the middle of the park and failed to come to the aid of Matteo Guendouzi on several occasions.
Edward Nketiah - 6/10
Eddie Nketiah got into a few good positions and had a few smart touches in the final third during the opening exchanges. Most of Arsenal's attacks seemed to pass through the young striker but he failed to make a meaningful impact as Manchester City dominated the proceedings.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang - 5/10
Arsenal's captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang struggled to get a touch on the ball and will be bitterly disappointed with his performance. The Gabonese striker was ignored by his Arsenal teammates on several occasions and cut a lonely figure in the final third.
Substitutes
David Luiz - 0/10
David Luiz is error-prone at his best, but had arguably the worst match of his career tonight and put in probably the worst performance you will ever see from a Premier League defender. David Luiz is the sole reason for Arsenal's defeat today. The Brazilian will likely be banished to the periphery of the squad for the rest of the season.
Dani Ceballos - 6/10
Dani Ceballos was brought on for Granit Xhaka early on in the game and started brightly for Arsenal with a couple of dribbles and a few good passes. The Spaniard faded into oblivion as the game progressed and was unable to counter the sheer quality of Manchester City's midfield.
Alexandre Lacazette - NA
Reiss Nelson - NA
Ainsley Maitland-Niles - NA
