Arsenal's Remarkable Triumph Over Man City: Mikel Arteta Hails Courage and Pep Guardiola Predicts Swift Comeback
Gabriel Martinelli's late goal seals a crucial victory for Arsenal against Man City, leveling them with Tottenham at the top of the table Mikel Arteta praises his team's bravery, while Pep Guardiola remains confident in City's ability to rebound Silva emphasizes that this setback won't define City What lies ahead for these two formidable teams?
Mikel Arteta commended the bravery displayed by his Arsenal team in what the Gunners manager labeled as a significant victory over Manchester City on Super Sunday.
In a thrilling showdown at the exultant Emirates Stadium, Gabriel Martinelli came off the substitute bench and fired an outstanding late goal to secure a 1-0 triumph for the hosts against their Premier League championship contenders.
Arsenal secured their first Premier League victory over City since December 2015, breaking a losing streak of 12 matches. This win holds special significance for Arteta, as it marks his first triumph over his former mentor, Pep Guardiola. Expressing his pride, Arteta acknowledged the importance of the collective effort, highlighting the significance of the right people and players coming together. He emphasized the team's readiness to endure hardship in order to achieve success. Arteta also emphasized the need for a stellar performance and the support of the crowd, describing the win as a significant achievement.
I believe our initial approach resulted in conceding the corner, but eventually, we managed to gain some control. In the second half, our performance was outstanding. We were present and displayed great aggression. The substitutions made a positive impact. The goal they scored was of exceptional quality.
Manchester City poses numerous challenges, and we also caused them difficulties. Escaping their pressure is not simple; it requires impeccable timing, movement, and seizing the right moments. I admire the bravery showcased.
"You are going to have these hard moments against this team. You have to be direct and manage the emotions and make sure you don't get caught against this team."
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Arsenal players celebrate after Gabriel Martinelli's goal gave them a late win over Manchester City
The result, in Arsenal's eyes, will be seen as justice served as Mateo Kovacic managed to escape a red card in the first half. Despite his studs colliding with Martin Odegaard's ankle, he only received a yellow card for the tackle. Even more surprisingly, he faced no additional consequences for committing a similar foul on Declan Rice just six minutes later.
Regarding this incident, Arteta commented by stating, "I have witnessed the action, but it is now in the past, and fortunately, we emerged victorious."
Martinelli: Beating City gives us more confidence
Match-winner Gabriel Martinelli expressed, "I am not solely responsible for our triumph. I believe everyone played a significant role in securing this victory. Although I scored the decisive goal, the entire team, coaching staff, and everyone involved contributed. Both I and the team are delighted."Following my injury, I dedicated myself to recovering and preparing for the upcoming match. Fortunately, I made a successful comeback in this particular game and contributed to the team's success. I am content with both my goal and physical condition."
The victory gives us an increased sense of confidence in our abilities. We are aware of the challenges they present and the difficulty in playing against them. However, defeating them has provided us with a significant boost in confidence to continue progressing.
Guardiola: Man City will bounce back
Arsenal go into the international break level on points with neighbours Tottenham at the summit of the premier league standings, demonstrating our exceptional performance and resilience.City is currently trailing by only two points, however, their back-to-back losses in the league, something they haven't experienced in five years, indicate that the previous champions might be more susceptible than in previous seasons.
During their encounter at the Emirates, City attempted only four shots, marking the lowest number of shots in a top-tier game for a Guardiola-led team since April 2010, when Barcelona faced Espanyol.
"We had a strong start, creating two or three opportunities. However, they began the second half with great momentum and scored a goal through deflection. Congratulations to them for the victory," stated Guardiola in his conversation with We.
"We made an effort and fought hard. It seemed that neither team had many scoring opportunities. Both sides executed effective high pressing tactics. The match was closely contested, and unfortunately, we lost due to a single action in the end."
Ten minutes passed with Arsenal in the lead, but soon the game became balanced. Although we had our own moments, overall it was a closely contested match. Regrettably, they managed to secure the victory.
Now we find ourselves with two consecutive defeats before the international break. Hopefully, our players will return fit and ready, and then we can restart our efforts. Perhaps it is advantageous to be present and assess what we need to do to catch up to them, and we will accomplish that upon our return.
"It happened. The Wolves game was challenging. Congratulations to Arsenal. We know precisely our course of action and we execute it." Guardiola acknowledged that Rodri's absence due to suspension influenced the defeat, stating, "We can't deny that statistic. However, we strategically placed players to have greater control over passes, but Arsenal proved their aggressiveness in these areas. We will rebound and press ahead."
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Silva: Setback won't define City
Manchester City midfielder Bernardo Silva expressed that the limited number of shots registered by his team at the Emirates was disappointing. However, he acknowledged that it is still early in the season and there is ample time to improve. Silva recognized the challenge of playing against a formidable opponent at their home ground, making it clear that it is never an easy task.The game was challenging for us, particularly due to the end result. While I don't believe we performed poorly, we did encounter a mishap.
There have been unexpected outcomes that we hoped would not occur. However, even during last season when we achieved the treble, there were instances when we faced difficulties. Such moments are inevitable. The team's character is shaped by how we effectively overcome them.
