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Football news: Reaction as Man City salvage a late draw against Arsenal with ten men

A “masterpiece” in defensepublished at 13:52 British Summer Time

Manchester City – Arsenal 2:2

Image source, Getty Images

I was equally impressed by Arsenal's response to Leandro Trossard's dismissal. Until Stones scored, they had been a masterpiece defending team in the second half.

Every player made incredible efforts to frustrate City for so long, but again there was a plan behind it and the whole team worked together.

As City camped outside their own penalty area, Arsenal thought about the whole process: staying in position, considering who to give more possession to and who to put under immediate pressure.

For example, they left no room for Doku or Savinho, but were happy to give Ruben Dias the chance to shoot or get the ball at any time.

It was brilliant game management but I was a little surprised that City didn't try to spread the opposition further apart, move the ball quicker or put more players in one-on-one situations.

This is what happened to Jack Grealish at the end when he found some width, beat the Arsenal defence twice in 30 seconds and took the corner that resulted in their goal.

While Arsenal deserve huge praise for keeping City from scoring for so long, Pep Guardiola's team must also be admired for the way they kept trying to salvage a point when it looked like they were going to get nothing for much of the game.

Instead, what could have been a terrible day for them – including Rodri's injury that forced him out early – ended on a really positive note.