Football VAVEL

Four things we learnt from Man City's 1-0 FA Cup victory over Arsenal

Manchester City progress into the fifth round of the FA cup after they defeat Arsenal 1-0 with a second half goal from Nathan Ake.

Four things we learnt from Man City's 1-0 FA Cup victory over Arsenal


MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - JANUARY 27: Erling Haaland of Manchester City with an overhead kick shot during the Emirates FA Cup Fourth Round match between Manchester City and Arsenal at Etihad Stadium on January 27, 2023 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Marc Atkins/Getty Images)
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By Adam Williamson

Man City beat Arsenal in a tight contest to seal their progression into the fifth round of the FA Cup and continue their journey.

A perfectly placed strike by Nathan Ake was the difference between the sides as Pep Guardiola's side ran out 1-0 winners.

The Gunners made six changes from their 3-2 victory against Manchester United last weekend with Turner, Tomiyasu, Holding, Viera, Tierney and new signing Trossard all coming back into the starting 11.

City replaced just the two players after there 3-0 triumph over Wolves, Ederson and Aymeric Laporte were demoted back to the dug out. 

The visitors started the game a lot better, and deserved to be up at half time however their final ball let them down. Gradually, the home side built into the game and after their first, they looked comfortable in holding onto the lead. 

This time, Manchester City come out victorious however the sides still have each other to play in the league, twice, with both encounters possibly deciding the Premier League Champion

  • Tricky Trossard's future at Arsenal looks bright 

Arsenal's new prize, Leandro Trossard, joined The Gunners last week for just £21million. The Belgian international has had a flying start to this season, with Arsenal making sure to snatch him up as additional help for their Premier League title charge. 

The 28-year-old winger has netted seven goals, as well as three assists in only 18 appearances for Brighton this season. 

However, tonight Mikel Arteta felt it was necessary for Trossard to make his first start in a red shirt, and he didn't disappoint. With Bukayo Saka pinned down by Manchester City's Nathan Ake, both Viera and Xhaka were forced down Trossard's left hand side. 

Youngster, Rico Lewis, struggled to compete with the tricky feet of the winger and the Belgian had the beating of him on numerous occasions.

He was the key catalyst in the visitors attacking moves, taking defenders on as well as understanding when to create. 

Kieran Tierney also looked dangerous down the left wing, linking up with Trossard instantly and dealing with City's pressure well.

Arteta will definitely be pleased and hoping to see more of tonight's performance. To be truthful, his price tag looks like a bargain. 

 

  • Nothing between the two side's 

Arsenal fans are witnessing their side's best Premier League start to a season since 2004, and the 12th best start ever. 

The Gunners already sit five points clear at the top of the table on 50 points exactly half way through the season, with their only defeat coming early on when they were defeated 3-1 at Old Trafford after a Marcus Rashford brace. 

Despite Manchester City's disappointing start to the season, they still lie in second place.

However, the majority of spectators expected to see them have the league wrapped up already, like in previous seasons, but Mikel Arteta's side are adamant to stop that trend. 

The club's have been unable to compete against each other this season, having their Premier League encounter postponed, meaning tonight's FA Cup tie is the first of three so far. 

The visitors came out of the blocks quickly, creating more chances and dominating the tempo of play in the first half. However, the hosts took control after the break, with Nathan Ake's cool finish breaking the deadlock in the 64th minute.

Although they fell short, Arsenal didn't stop fighting and proved they deserve that number one spot in the league - consistently pressing City throughout and having their fair share of the ball, something most teams struggle to do against the current Champions. 

 

  • Slow start makes it difficult for City

One of City's biggest criticisms this season has been their failure to start matches quickly, leaving it too late too often.

This has been on display for all to see in recent weeks, such as their 4-2 victory over Spurs, despite being 2-0 down at the break. 

However, despite winning the majority of these games, they were shown at Manchester United it does not always work as United came from behind late on with goals from Bruno Fernandes and Marcus Rashford to seal all three points for The Red Devils.

Tonight was the same for The Citizens as they left it till the 64th minute, when Ake perfectly placed one into the bottom right corner past Turner.

The away side had a much better first half, controlling possession and making it hard for the hosts.

Pep Guardiola stated earlier this season "It is good in that when we went behind before, it was always difficult to come back. We’ve shown we can come back but we need to avoid it and manage this situation"

However, they consistently continue to pick up three points, even with these slow starts. At the end of the day, as you will have heard before, football is about winning -  which they did as they secure their spot in the FA Cup fifth round. 

  • Haaland is more than just goals

The young Norwegian joined The Citizens last summer from Borussia Dortmund and it is safe to say he has been a world class signing. 

The 22 year old has bagged 31 goals in just 27 games for Manchester City, with 25 of these coming in the Premier League, putting him on track to break Mo Salah's record of 32 goals in a season. 

However, he couldn't quite find the net on his FA Cup debut, he nevertheless still caused issues for the oppositions centre half's.

In the first half, Rob Holding was given the challenge of dealing with the 6'4" forward. Holding coped to the best of his abilities, minimising Haaland's threat well but this wasn't to say he didn't have the better of Arsenal's defence several times. 

Haaland almost scored a spectacular overhead kick from outside the area after bullying the visiting defence. On countless occasions, The Gunners centre half's struggled to deal with the physicality of the Norwegian and were exploited this way. 

The arrival of William Saliba in the second half was bad news for the striker as he didn't get a sniff after half time as he was comfortably dealt with. 

The facts are, without his goal scoring abilities, he is still a nuisance to the opposition - dropping deep and using his wide frame to take the ball away with ease, which was shown tonight.