Manchester City 5-0 Arsenal
Manchester City thrashed Arsenal with a five-goal drubbing at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
Arsenal’s slow start to the season failed to get up to speed once again as defensive ineptitude and calamitous performances were all they could muster against a rampant Manchester City.
City made use of the false nine system their boss Pep Guardiola had implemented last season, with Ferran Torres starring in the title role.
The North London side’s defending in their own box was worryingly poor as Ilkay Gundogan headed home in the seventh minute.
Torres’ first of the day came five minutes later with the same problems evident in the Arsenal backline.
Arsenal were disconnected and disparaged throughout the game while Manchester City played with swagger and made a rout look uniform.
Arsenal captain Granit Xhaka was sent off for a two-footed lunge on Joao Cancelo and Gabriel Jesus added a third for City before the half ended to kill the game.
Rodri added a fourth early in the second half with Torres adding his second and wrapping up the scoring six minutes from time.
Arsenal failed to get on the scoreboard as they failed to get a shot on target in a miserable performance that will surely put Mikel Arteta’s job under intense scrutiny – the side’s only shot came early in the first half.
The former Arsenal captain has had multiple high-profile tactical mishaps – the match against Chelsea least week being a recent example of this.
Pep, on the other hand, will have gained more faith in the formation that took City to their first-ever UEFA Champions League final.
The fluidity on display throughout the match and the seamless transitions between defence and attack, as well as Jesus’ continued run of impressive form on the wing, will only serve to compliment a devastating setup further.
Manchester City will face Leicester City after the international break on Sunday, September 11.
