Leaders in the Premier League with a five-point lead and one game less, the Gunners have nevertheless shown that it will be very difficult to dislodge them in the league.
With Matt Turner in the cages, Rob Holding in defense, Fabio Vieira in the middle and Leandro Trossard established for the first time in attack, Mikel Arteta had operated a lot of rotations, where Pep Guardiola had chosen a fairly classic eleven with Erling Haaland in tip, Kevin de Bruyne, Riyad Mahrez, Jack Grealish or Ilkay Gündogan.
Despite this, Arsenal did more than hold their own in the first half, the first alerts being provoked by Trossard who found Takehiro Tomiyasu for a strike repelled by Stefan Ortega (5th), before the Belgian tried his luck himself, to the same result (21st).
But the match gradually changed its soul, first with the exit at the break of Thomas Partey, side Arsenal.
Without his powerful Ghanaian, the Londoners gradually left control of the game to City and the change to 4-4-2 with the entry of Julian Alvarez in place of Mahrez (58th), uninspired, tipped the match.
Seconds after the Argentinian found the post, Grealish served back Nathan Ake and the Dutchman's low, curling shot found the opposite side netting from Turner (1-0, 65').
Arsenal then besieged City's goal, Arteta throwing Oleksandr Zinchenko, Gabriel Martinelli and Martin Odegaard into battle, but City's substitute keeper was very vigilant and ultimately shook little.
The victory on one side, a good performance despite a reshuffled team on the other, Guardiola and Arteta, the master and his pupil, will both have reasons for satisfaction after this match.
But the meeting of February 15, in the league and at the Emirates, this time, will be much more crucial for the season of the two clubs.
© 2023 AFP