Encounters between the reigning Premier League champions and Arsenal have become synonymous with fierce competition, tactical brilliance, and, at times, contentious moments. This latest clash was no different, culminating in a dramatic 2-2 draw after a resilient 10-man Arsenal heartbreakingly conceded a last-gasp equaliser from John Stones deep into stoppage time.
An ever-evolving Arsenal side under the direction of Mikel Arteta played a confident Manchester City team, who continue to dominate British football after their consecutive Premier League victories. Despite their second-place finish last season, Arsenal brought tactical mastery and strong defending to hold City back from claiming victory at the Etihad. Haaland’s 9th-minute goal set up Manchester City well, but the first half was filled with scuffles and challenges between the two teams. Twelve minutes later, Arsenal’s new signing Calafiore equalised – a goal that was controversial for City fans and players who believed Kyle Walker wasn’t given enough time to get back in position. In the first minute of added time, Arsenal were able to take the lead. Minutes later, Arsenal’s Trossard was shown a red card for kicking the ball away in dissent after barging into a City player.
Ten-man Arsenal, at the mercy of Manchester City and a supposedly biassed referee, battled bravely on, employing some controversial time-wasting tactics in a desperate attempt to hold off a relentless City side. In what appears to be a continuing series of questionable decisions by Michael Oliver, Arsenal’s young debutant – Myles Lewis-Skelley – was booked from the touchline for his ‘verbal protests’ before he’d even stepped onto the pitch for the first time. Throughout the dying moments of the second half, Arsenal players went down in what City fans believe to be ‘dark arts tactics’. The 90 minutes ended, and 7 minutes of added time were given, during which Stones scored with what was essentially the final kick of the match.
Following the game, serious questions were raised about the integrity of the FA’s choice of referee – Michael Oliver. Talk of Oliver’s trip to the UAE to referee a match in Dubai, funded by Manchester City’s owners, began circulating on social media. Fans took to Twitter to voice their disdain at Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL), the company that supplies referees to the Premier League. It emerged that over 53 games, Oliver issued 7 red cards and 94 yellow cards to Arsenal, compared to 47 games refereeing for Manchester City, where he issued 47 yellow cards and no red cards. Media pundits, including AFTV, a fan-run platform, criticised what they described as ‘horrendous’ officiating – with one member of AFTV boldly claiming that “Cheats do prosper.”
In what was perceived to be more questionable refereeing, Erling Haaland would not face any retrospective action for launching a ball at the back of Gabriel’s head after City’s John Stones equalised. Former Gunners striker Ian Wright declared Haaland a ‘coward’.
After the game, scuffles broke out between the camps of both teams. Despite parts of the game being shrouded by controversy and theatrics, Arsenal demonstrated their technical brilliance and dogged resilience throughout the match, cementing themselves as contenders for the Premier League title at the end of the season.
“Mikel Arteta 2021” by Prime Video AU & NZ is licensed under CC BY