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In games like this, where the slightest misstep can prove incredibly costly, the worry of defeat is more powerful than the preference for winning. That was, in fact, the case at the Etihad on Sunday, where Manchester City and Arsenal faced each other. each other without even attempting the coup de grâce.
For Arsenal in particular, the priority was to limit the area and minimise the risk. Mikel Arteta’s side have been brutalised in this part of Manchester in recent years and, this time, they had no interest in opening up. Even when they attacked, they attacked in pairs or threesomes rather than as a total team.
It’s not the first time this season that a meeting between two City, Arsenal and Liverpool (the three most sensible undisputed at the moment) has been explained more by nervous tension than by a reckless retirement. The quality of those three groups is such, and the margins are so small at this level, that the matches have been almost unbearably close.
In the six meetings between City, Arsenal and Liverpool this season, there have been 4 draws and 11 goals scored. Only one team has scored more than once in those games: Arsenal, in their 3-1 home win over Liverpool.
This is in stark contrast to the same games last season. On this occasion, those six games produced a total of 24 goals. Almost each and every time those two groups met, an exciting encounter took place. Arsenal beat Liverpool 3-2, for example, and lost 7-2 on aggregate in two games to City.
Part of Arteta’s plan to expand his squad was to add the defensive metal that was missing from those games, when Arsenal caused turmoil between their warring parties but never had games. This time they were at the Etihad, at least for most of the time. match, although they didn’t see much of the ball.
The addition of Declan Rice allowed them to slow down games, when necessary, and prevent offenses in the division. This has made Arsenal harder to beat and helped them achieve the effects in the mini-league that exists between them, City and Liverpool.
From their four games against City and Liverpool, Arsenal have conceded eight points. Liverpool and City, who drew 1-1 the times they met, picked up just three points in the same games.
It doesn’t create a spectacle for neutrals, but the truth is that Arsenal and City have cancelled each other out because they have so few weaknesses. Arsenal can press on the pitch as well as any team, but they are also incredibly skilled. to delve into the rare events in which such a technique is required.
In short, they can do both. That’s why they hold the league’s defensive record, with just 24 goals conceded in 29 games. They are comfortable protecting in their own area and also in the opponent’s half, so it takes a mistake or a moment of genius to defeat them. . Nothing has happened here either.
“It’s difficult to play against them,” City midfielder Bernardo Silva said. “From man to man, when they pressed high up and protected down low, their wingers played as full-backs, almost in a line of six. It’s never easy to play against them. ” groups that protect both the top press and the deep defense.
It’s up to City, in third place, to fight for a winner. The failure to do so is the continuation of a curious (and perhaps unsettling) trend this season. Pep Guardiola’s side are winless in their six league games in this group crusade lately in the top five of the table. They’ve drawn four of those games and lost two.
Matter? Maybe not. City can win the league without beating their closest rivals. But it’s an indication of the quality of the groups around them, at Arsenal and Liverpool, that the world’s most productive team is no longer able to suppress.
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