On the evening of January 1, 2022, Beijing time, Manchester City defeated Arsenal 2-1 away from home and won 11 consecutive Premier League wins. In the first half, Saka pushed inside the box to help the Gunners lead by one goal at home; in the second half, Xhaka pulled down the B seat in the penalty area, the referee awarded a penalty after watching the VAR, And Mahrez scored the equalizer; after which Gabriel was sent off with two yellows and one red, and arsenal ten people competed. In injury time, Rodri scored a goal to complete the shootout. After this campaign, the Blue Moon led second place Chelsea by 11 points with one more game.
Xhaka is a disaster star.
A good game of chess. Because he habitually rubbed the edge ball to challenge the rules, ruined. Arsenal didn't even keep the draw. The two teams in the current Premier League form are facing each other, and the situation has encouraged Liverpool and Chelsea at one point. Unfortunately, Arsenal's advantage remained for almost 60 minutes as Xhaka unnecessarily pulled down Bernardo Silva in the penalty area and sent City a penalty. After conceding the goal, the Arsenal players were slightly out of control. Centre-back Gabriel knocked over compatriot Jesus again on a quick comeback for Manchester City, eating a second yellow. It was Arsenal's 100th red card in the Premier League, more than any club; Altetta has already had 11 men in his tenure, more than any other team.
Outnumbered, Arsenal remained scrappy until the 93rd minute, when they were picked up by Rodri in the penalty area to score the winning goal. The goal, 92 minutes and 28 seconds, was just 33 seconds ahead of Jesus' goal against Southampton in May 2018. Jesus' kick brushed Manchester City's quarterly points to 100 points. It was Guardiola's first Premier League title, and Rodri's foot widened City's lead by 11 points, most likely bringing Guardiola a fourth Premier League trophy. There is precedent for this. Both Manchester United and Manchester City recorded double-digit points advantages over their second-place opponents on New Year's Day. On both occasions, United and Manchester City had a lead of 12 points, both hitting the line in advance without suspense. Manchester United defended their title with a double title in 1993-94 and Manchester City also won the Premier League and League Cup in 2017-18.
Guardiola said to himself before the game: "Sooner or later, the team will lose, if it is going to lose, we must remain calm and keep going." That's the lesson I learned last season [in the COVID-19 pandemic], everything is okay if you calm down. Now that City have won 11 straight rounds, Guardiola's next goal may be to break his record of 15 consecutive wins last season. The original record was 13 rounds when Conte led Chelsea to the title. City's next five opponents are Chelsea, Southampton, Brentford, Norwich and Tottenham. If you win Chelsea, a new record is just around the corner. In the first half of the summary, I said: Manchester City not only has a strong squad, but also makes the opponent helpless is stable. Even at the last minute, the team remained unhurried and patiently looked for opportunities.
De Bruyne's over-the-top ball flew into the air behind Holden. Holdern came off the bench to fill Gabriel's vacancy and fought for the first point, but it was the opposing centre-back Laporte who got the second point behind him. Laporte's shot was blocked, Rodri gave another kick, and Ramsdale was powerless to return to the sky. Rodri's goal, interesting is not that he picked up the leak, but that it was Laporte who came forward to fight for the second point. Arsenal's 10 men survived for more than 30 minutes, and by the end of the time required, their fitness had been exhausted. How did Guardiola take advantage of the extra numbers? He pushed Laporte up front and played as a center. Usually watching Manchester City's games, we must find out who Manchester City really is and when will they act as arrows? It's not easy. Laporte suddenly jumped into the front and arsenal defenders were also beaten cold.
Without Xhaka's recklessness and Gabriel's no-frills, Arsenal would have no problem getting at least one point. The two halves of home and away play were clear. City were listless in the first half, with Arsenal's pressing and quick backlash playing well. When it was almost 30 minutes, the interesting data came out: Arsenal recorded 75% of the ball between the 21st and 26th minutes! Put in any Premier League team, rubbing Manchester City so overwhelmingly in the game, no one has ever done it. Arsenal's advantage also quickly translated into goals. In the 30th minute Tierney stepped in to send the ball into the opposition penalty area, which was originally aimed at Lacazette. Unexpectedly, Saka seized the moment when Ake and Lacazette were entangled, flashed out from behind the two, and preemptively sent the ball into the goal. Arsenal have not had such a young player since Anelka to score against the defending champions.
If it weren't for the video little black room misjudgment, Arsenal would have taken the lead in the 10th minute. Edson abandons the door to block Edgar's single knife, and the replay shows that the two men's feet have touched together. In the end, the little black house decided that Edson touched the ball first. In the first 45 minutes, Arsenal overwhelmed Manchester City across the board. Arteta's absence from the sidelines does not affect the team's play. The team was able to climb back to the top four from the bottom of the third round, and Arteta stabilized the hearts and minds of the army and used the troops to succeed in the law, which was the main reason. Guardiola also made a point of pointing out. When Arsenal were at the bottom, Guardiola also made an exception to intercede for Arteta, hoping that the Arsenal board would be cautious. As it turns out, Arteta's level of business is indeed the highest of the three big DNA coaches. He dared to punish Aubameyang, who ignored the team rules, and stripped him of his captain's armband, which served as an excellent warning for the whole team. Will he consider Xhaka's problem? The latter repeatedly self-destructed the Great Wall in key battles and could not continue to appease.
Arsenal's reversal is certainly frustrating. It's not just them who are disappointed, but also Liverpool and Chelsea. But the teams competing for the fourth sequence were undoubtedly injected with a shot in the arm. There is no shame in losing to Manchester City, but it is necessary to prevent the negative emotions of frustration from picking up. The next round is the North London derby, and continuing to lose points will hit the confidence of the team to compete for four. Xhaka's senseless penalty, as well as Gabriel's red card, were costly mistakes. Xhaka is a mischievous attitude, and his contrast with Arsenal in the national team shows that he does not take Arsenal seriously. Xhaka is old and should no longer be reused, even if there is a shortage of manpower under the epidemic. No one can afford such a toss from a reckless man. Gabriel suffered from experience. The opponent is plotting to give you a yellow card, and you still send it to the door?
Defensive enough "cunning" attack does not pull the crotch, the big heart Rodri made a meritorious kill
In the first game of the new year, Manchester City, who had won 11 consecutive games, suffered the most dangerous first half of the season. Arsenal, who once had 75 per cent possession, suppressed Manchester City in the most manicured way. But when the godly Rodri appeared on the line of the small penalty area in the 3rd minute of stoppage time, the Gunners fans boiled over and had to usher in the end of the five-game winning streak in the most regrettable way. In the second half of Manchester City's backlash, Rodri's tough midfield interception gradually made Arsenal lose patience, and his third goal of the season to tie the professional league production record was Manchester City's latest winning goal since May 2018 , when the Blue Moon delivered a nearly perfect championship season with 100 points. Now, the blue moon with 21 rounds of 53 points, beatitude to rodri's savior, vaguely sees the possibility of rewriting the record.
Rodri was absent from Brentford in the last round with an injury and now appears to be a blessing in disguise. The Manchester City generals, who have been fighting consecutively, are obviously tired of the war, and they have not been able to enter the state after the opening, and the Gunners have frequently penetrated their own defense through the ribs, and Ruben Díaz still continues the passive situation of the last slightly distracted, and the constantly retreating Rodri has become the breakwater that stands in front of the big penalty area. Under the focus of the Spaniards, Erdegaard, who took on the heavy responsibility of Arsenal's organization, was basically unable to play and was immediately replaced after the team was reduced. After Saka went down to the city first, Rodri, who read the situation on the field in time, took the initiative to come more from the middle circle to the left side to participate in the defense. Compared to the enthusiastic but inexperienced home team, Rodri was the first to eat through the scale of card master Atwell. At the end of the first half, the Spaniards closed the door to defend Saka with Arc, and decisively lowered their feet to bring down their opponents as they were about to wipe the two of them, a move that, although not friendly, escaped Atwell's penalty.
An even more horrific scene occurred at the beginning of the second half, when Lacazette completed a steal in front of the field, and when Martinelli tried to shoot in front of the box, the galloping Rodri crossed the interception, the former almost took off in the air and fell heavily to the ground, but Atwell only gave the home team a corner, and even decided that it was not a foul. It also became the trigger for arsenal's entire team to lose control of their emotions. Compared with Gabriel, who has been red in two consecutive games this season, the "cunning" Rodri is exactly the opposite of the Brazilian. In the 64th minute, Rodri knocked down Lacazette from behind, and although the referee blew a foul, it was Saka who finally received the yellow card.
Compared with Gundogan, who set a new personal production record last season, Rodri, who often stands at the bottom of the three midfielders at club and national teams, does not seem to be known for scoring goals. But with the exception of his apprenticeship season at Villarreal in 2015-16, the Spanish midfield has never been empty in five years. Similar to Gundogan, who has experience in headers and point grabbing, the Espanyol, who has no loss, can also complete the standard forward action in the penalty area, and there was a clean and clean long-range world wave against Everton in November, and when the German came off the bench, the two men's position and normal state came to a reversal, Guardiola chose to use Rodri's body to attack the box, which eventually left Arsenal with only three people in the midfield.
After completing the kill, the wildly celebratory Rodri took off his shirt and ran wildly, even if it was the main team stand, there was no fear, the pouring of mineral water bottles and angry curses had already helped, and the yellow card issued by Atwell was long irrelevant. After the game, the Spanish midfielder, who was named the best in the game by many media, has obviously put the unhappiness of throwing the water bottle behind his head and took the initiative to comfort the slightly lost Saka. Admittedly, in the eyes of Arsenal fans, this is completely cheap and selling well, but Arsenal, which has lost a good game, may be missing Rodri-style cunning and even speculation.
Wen | Lin Liangfeng Yang Jian
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