Arsenal produced a stunning second half performance to power past Manchester City in a 5-1 victory at the Emirates Stadium.
Declan Rice produced a magnificent performance as he set the tone from the first whistle with his tenacious press and was also on hand to assist goals for an Arsenal Academy duo.
Captain Martin Odegaard equalled Mesut Ozil’s Arsenal goal tally by scoring the opener in the early stages before Erling Haaland equalised after half time to leave the game in the balance.
Thomas Partey put Arsenal in front just seconds later before the Myles Lewis-Skelly, who scored 10/10 in the Arsenal player ratings, fired home a third.
Kai Havertz and Ethan Nwaneri rounded off a fine performance for the Gunners but it was not only Arteta’s attack that clicked during the game and one statistic proves what a fine defensive display it was from Arsenal too.
Phil Foden not allowed to make any impact on Arsenal due to Myles Lewis-Skelly
Arsenal went into the game knowing that they needed to be aware of Manchester City’s considerable attacking threat.
Omar Marmoush had looked lively against Chelsea and there was the obvious threat of the quality duo Phil Foden and Haaland. However, Foden was not allowed any space during the game and an extraordinary statistic from StatMuse highlights this.
Foden has often been compared to winger Bukayo Saka because of their similar age and position on the pitch but it was a day to forget for the City winger as he was completely dominated by the excellent Lewis-Skelly.
Every time Foden managed to get on the ball, he was suffocated by the young Arsenal defender and then helped out by more of his Arsenal team mates as the Gunners pressed the ball in numbers to great effect.
Bukayo Saka seen celebrating on the pitch at full time with his Arsenal team mates
Arsenal will be hoping that Saka can recover from his hamstring injury as quickly as possible in order to help Arsenal’s fight for a trophy this season.
At full time of the victory of Pep Guardiola’s side, Saka was seen celebrating with his team mates on the pitch and the Gunners will be hoping it isn’t too long until he is back on the Emirates Stadium turf in his kit.
Saka had made 22 goal contributions in all competitions this season before his devastating injury against Crystal Palace.
Arteta will be hoping to call upon the Hale End graduate soon as he recovers from his hamstring tear, he could return for some vital fixtures in the Champions League and Premier League title race.
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