Premier League Heavyweights Arsenal and Man City Trade Blows in Title Race Stalemate

Sunday - 21/09/2025 20:04

Neither Arsenal nor Manchester City left the Emirates fully satisfied with the 1-1 result. Here's what you need to know from Sunday's blockbuster match.

Tom Hamilton
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Tom Hamilton
Senior Writer
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Mark Ogden
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Mark Ogden
Senior Writer, ESPN FC
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Sep 22, 2025, 01:11 AM

LONDON -- Gabriel Martinelli's injury-time equalizer saw Arsenal snatch a 1-1 draw with Manchester City at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday.

Erling Haaland's first-half strike looked to be enough to secure a key win for Pep Guardiola's side at their fellow title challengers, but the strength of Arsenal's bench again proved to be enough to get the breakthrough as Martinelli lobbed Gianluigi Donnarumma in the 93rd minute of the match.

For so long it looked as if City's defensive stand was going to frustrate Arsenal. Haaland's goal was from a rare City attack, while Arsenal had plenty of possession but failed to turn that into clear-cut chances. That was until Martinelli's neat, lofted effort flew over Donnarumma's head into the corner of the net. -- Tom Hamilton

Arsenal show character but miss out on statement victory

After a summer of largesse in the transfer market that established a squad depth to rival any in the sport, this was meant to be the afternoon when Arsenal underlined their title credentials. Having lost to Liverpool already, Arsenal could not afford to drop further points to City.

They showed more life in the second half, but the first half was a turgid performance from Arsenal as they mustered only one shot on target. They looked devoid of inspiration and played in front of City's back four, rather than finding a way to tease the door open. They lacked creativity in midfield and a cutting edge up front. Noni Madueke frequently found himself constrained to the byline, and though he managed to get his crosses away, they inevitably found a player in blue. Arteta's changes at halftime, introducing Bukayo Saka and Eberechi Eze, gave Arsenal more life, but still City's back line stood firm and frustrated Viktor Gyökeres, who barely got a sniff of a decent chance.

Gabriel Martinelli scored in the 93rd minute to salvage a draw for Arsenal vs. Manchester City. Alex Pantling/Getty Images

Ultimately, the strength of Arsenal's bench saw them through. The introductions of Eze, Saka, Martinelli and Ethan Nwaneri gave them enough impetus to force a late breakthrough by Martinelli. But what will concern Arteta is how they left it so late to break down City's defense. This was an opportunity missed for Arsenal. -- Hamilton

Haaland now the complete forward

Remember when former Manchester United captain Roy Keane disparagingly suggested that Erling Haaland was "like a League Two player" because of what he offered -- or more pertinently, what he didn't -- when he wasn't scoring goals? Those comments were made in March 2024 after Haaland had produced a poor performance for City. At the time, Keane wasn't on his own in thinking that the prolific goal scorer needed to do more for the team.

Haaland has always racked up goals, and he has scored so many that even a coach as demanding as Pep Guardiola has been willing to make allowances, simply because he is capable of winning games with one flash of genius. But Haaland has evolved as a player as well as a striker, and the 25-year-old's ninth-minute goal at the Emirates Stadium showcased just how much more he now has in his locker.

The Norway international started the move for the goal inside his own half by winning the ball and laying it off to Tijjani Reijnders before sprinting forward and leaving marker Gabriel chasing his shadow. Reijnders then burst forward and returned the ball to Haaland, who took a touch before beating David Raya with his right foot. It was the kind of goal that Haaland might not have scored 18 months ago when Keane made his critiques. -- Mark Ogden

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Shaka Hislop analyses Manchester City's changes in their style of play.

Pep Lijnders' influence at City starting to show

It was a surprise when Guardiola hired Pep Lijnders as his new assistant this summer, calling upon Jurgen Klopp's former coach at Liverpool to help get his team back on track after last season's failure to win a trophy. Klopp's Liverpool had been a real thorn in City's side, but it was their brand of rapid counterattacking football that Guardiola was so keen to adopt, prompting him to recruit Lijnders, sources told ESPN.

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Sources said Lijnders has been repeatedly drilling the City squad on the training ground in an effort to fast-track their evolution into a counterattacking side. The fruits of his labour are beginning to show. Last week, City beat Manchester United 3-0 with only 45% possession in the whole game. At the Emirates, the Blues had 33%, the lowest ever for a Guardiola-led team.

Despite building his reputation as a master of the passing game, Guardiola has spotted a change in tactical trends, and City are having to move with the times. Haaland's goal was an example of their ability to counter quickly. With the pace of Haaland and Jérémy Doku in the team, they continued to hit Arsenal on the counter in this game. -- Ogden

Donnarumma shows quality despite late misstep

The Arsenal supporters took a disliking to Gianluigi Donnarumma pretty early on. He likes to take his time while evaluating the options at his disposal, much to the ire of the Arsenal supporters inside the Emirates. He didn't look the remotest bit bothered as the boos rained down on him. Eventually he was shown a yellow card in the 75th minute after his latest display of time-wasting, but the whole charade was a snapshot of the unflappable mentality that has made him one of the finest goalkeepers in the world.

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He must also be such a calm presence for the defenders in front of him. City had a makeshift right back in Abdukodir Khusanov, and had young left back Nico O'Reilly on the opposite side of the back four. It was also fascinating to see him warming up. Donnarumma and the coaches were focusing on crosses, and he spent a good amount of time flying through the air, punching crosses clear.

It was a precursor for what they anticipated would be a set piece bombardment from Arsenal. Those skills were called upon as Arsenal's corners peppered his goal as he repelled anything and everything hurled his way from the set pieces. But his positioning will be questioned for Arsenal's equalizer as he gave enough space for Martinelli to lift the ball over his head and into the net. -- Hamilton

Ødegaard's absence felt by Arsenal

Arsenal have dropped points in two Premier League games this season, and Martin Ødegaard hasn't started either of them. The Gunners' captain was restricted to a substitute appearance in the 1-0 defeat at Liverpool because of a shoulder injury, and he missed this draw against City completely because of a recurrence of the same problem.

Hislop: Gyökeres hasn't done something to even critique

Shaka Hislop discusses how Viktor Gyökeres fits in Arsenal and how he can contribute to the team's title fight.

Arsenal have been able to overcome the absence of Ødegaard against lesser opponents, but when they are facing the top teams, they really miss his craft and guile. Arteta now has a squad of real depth with at least two players for every position, but he has no direct replacement for Ødegaard. Without the Norway midfielder, Arsenal don't have a midfielder capable of controlling the play or unlocking opposition defenses through the middle of the pitch. When Ødegaard misses out, Arsenal play everything out wide, and the best teams know how to deal with that.

Against City, Martinelli's late equalizer rescued a point and saved the Gunners from a costly defeat against a title rival. But if Arsenal are to win the Premier League, they need Ødegaard back and for him to stay fit. -- Ogden

Statement performance from O'Reilly

Last weekend, Nottingham Forest had a dreadful time trying to contain Noni Madueke. They had Morato at left back in the first half; Neco Williams faired a little better after the break, but Madueke was lethal. A week later, it fell to O'Reilly to marshal Madueke, and he did an outstanding job. O'Reilly is more naturally a midfielder, but has been used at left back under Guardiola. Madueke was frequently forced to the byline, and his cutbacks found City players rather than anyone wearing red. In the second half, O'Reilly had Saka to deal with and again, managed to keep a lid on his threats.

It was also fascinating to see how O'Reilly was used in attack, frequently slotting into midfield with Jeremy Doku maintaining the width. It was similar to how Guardiola's used John Stones in the past. The 20-year-old was substituted off in the 87th minute utterly exhausted, and bruised, but he was outstanding. On this evidence, Rayan Aït-Nouri will have competition on his hands for the left-back spot when he comes back from injury. -- Hamilton

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