Manchester City: Lessons from Gunners game

MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - NOVEMBER 05: Josep Guardiola, Manager of Manchester City celebrates his sides first goal during the Premier League match between Manchester City and Arsenal at Etihad Stadium on November 5, 2017 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images) /

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It was a tough ask for Manchester City to go again after, what was, a tough game away in Naples. Arsenal were nine points away from City at the start of the game. They also had a midweek European game, but had rested some of today’s starters.

In today’s game, at the Etihad, Pep started all but two who started against Napoli. Early on it showed a little with City not at their irresistible best. A quick look at the stats don’t always show the whole story but I think emphasise my point.

Enjoying 58% possession is, off the top of my head, one of the lowest in recent games, certainly at home. Our shots count was also in single figures, also one of the lowest enjoyed by the blues. That said, at the end of the season, the only stats that count are points and goals scored. In this game we got the maximum three points, and continued our three goals scored average.

So what can we take away from Sunday’s game?