Last weekend we saw a fiery title clash between Champions Manchester City and title challengers Arsenal. In previous years, this game has been a boring smash for the neutral to watch, with Arsenal having an astonishingly poor record in recent years against Manchester City. In fact, their last win at the Etihad was back in 2015, where manager Mikel Arteta was still playing for the club. Yet the clash between these two juggernauts ended in a star studded 2-2 draw, which saw fouls, fights and a red card.
Manchester City, who were favourites for this game considering their incredible home record against Arsenal, started the fixture with Erling Halaand netting his 100th goal for the club matching Cristiano Ronaldo's record for the fastest to 100 goals for a single European club.
Yet despite the triumphant start, Rodri went down with what turned out to be an ACL injury and Arsenal grew into the game with Riccardo Calafiori hitting a wonder goal for his first goal for Arsenal and Gabriel rising again to score from a corner.
Yet once again the game changed.
Leandro Trossard saw red for kicking the ball away in a controversial decision considering Jeremy Doku and Bernardo Silva went by unpunished for the same offence. It was the second time this season an Arsenal player had seen red for kicking the ball away.
The Gunners defended valiantly until the 98th minute, where John Stones knocked in the equaliser. Despite such an exciting game, both managers looked displeased, both unhappy with the lack of three points but this game sparked something new.
Both teams ended up sharing heated words with Haaland telling Mikel Arteta to 'stay humble' and the forward throwing the ball at the back of Gabriel's head. It continued in the press conferences where several players complained of Arsenals 'dark arts' and Arsenal players gave muted speech about the referees controversial decisions.
In recent years the title race has been a subdued competition between Liverpool and Manchester City. There was too much respect and love between the two teams, probably because Man City spent 6 of the 7 years beating Liverpool to the title and saw them as a cute contender rather than a fiery rival.
Yet there has been a different agenda from City when it comes to Arsenal. From the constant digs, to the fighting after games, this once dead rubber game has now become a blockbuster fixture that everyone looks forward to when it arises. Gabriel has already hinted that Arsenal will be waiting eagerly for City at "their house" in February.
The story around these two teams is extraordinary. On one side is Goliath who is controlled by the master of football and on the other side stands David who is being led by the student. Only time will tell how this incredible rivalry will unfold and who will be victorious
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