Match Report: Arsenal and City Fail to Capitalise on Chelsea Loss
In the wake of Chelsea's surprise 1-0 defeat to Crystal Palace, the incentive was there for both Arsenal and Manchester City to capitalise in Saturday's late kick-off. In the end though, both sides were made to settle for a point as Mathieu Flamini's second half equaliser cancelled out David Silva's opener in an entertaining 1-1 draw at the Emirates.
The visitors went ahead in the first half, Silva on hand to tap in from close range after Edin Dzeko struck the post. The hosts started the second half brightly however and were duly rewarded for their efforts in the 53rd minute when Flamini turned past Joe Hart to draw Arsenal level, with City in the process conceding their first Premier League goal in 561 minutes of action. The draw was a fair result come full time and will give the Gunners the confidence to end the campaign strongly on the back of a turbulent week.
The stalemate ensured Arsenal remained an outside bet in the Premier League title race, though they were somewhat fortuituous to go in at half time only 1-0 down. The north London side registered just the 1 shot on goal - a poor Olivier Giroud effort - in the opening 45 minutes, a far cry from City's 7, 3 of which were on target.
Moreover, City edged the possession (56% to 44%) and their advantage at the break was warranted. Manuel Pellegrini's side started the game with a plan of attacking Arsenal's left flank, with Jesús Navas and Pablo Zabaleta both giving Kieran Gibbs a tough start to the encounter. With David Silva often pulling to the right, and Lukas Podolski failing to track back, Gibbs was swamped by the fluid City attack, with the majority of their attacks (47%) coming down the right over the 90 minutes.
However, Arsenal put in a much-improved second half display that saw them register 9 shots on goal and ensured possession was much more even (48% to 52% in favour of City) come full time. While neither side was able to capitalise on Chelsea's loss at Selhurst Park, the two teams will be boosted by a result which ensures they remain in the hunt for domestic glory.
Though City were expected to come away with all three points, Arsenal gave a good account of themselves that will undeniably send a message to the rest of the league that they are not out of this title race. While Liverpool were the biggest winners from Saturday's results amongst the top-4, Pellegrini's side arguably hold the cards heading into the final stretch, with City having 2 games in hand over the Reds, Arsenal and Chelsea.
"All four teams in the title race will drop points between now and the end of the season," Pellegrini said following the full time whistle and with City and Chelsea still to travel to Liverpool between now and May, he's not wrong. Nevertheless, in a week where his side picked up a combined 4 points at Manchester United and Arsenal, the Chilean was understandably pleased about the result.
Arsène Wenger added: "Mathematically, we are still in there (the title race), but it is not in our hands." The second half display will have buoyed the Frenchman and the fans. All in all the point was a fair result for both sides following contrasting halves and will fill Arsenal with confidence in the last 6 matches.
Do you think Arsenal's 1-1 draw with Manchester City means they're still in the title race? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below
