Full Time: Arsenal 0-2 Manchester City
Premier League defending champions Manchester City comfortably beat Arsenal 2-0 away at the Emirates Stadium to kick-start their campaign in style. Fantastic goals from Raheem Sterling and Bernardo Silva sealed the deal for Pep Guardiola’s men, who just looked irresistible at times.
Arsenal never had answers to the questions raised by their opponents. They are a work in progress, so this loss might deflate them a bit but won’t usher from the fact that Unai Emery needs time to sort this mess.
For City, it was a case of more or less the same as last season. They were in cruise control for most parts of the second half.
Manchester City Player Ratings
Ederson (7.5)
Made a vital save off Hector Bellerin in the first half to keep his team’s lead. He was a bit sloppy in ball distribution. Overall, the Brazilian wasn’t tested enough.
Kyle Walker (8.5)
Marauded up from the right flank to cause problems for Arsenal throughout the first half. Reverted to an inside channel role in the second half and looked comfortable.
John Stones (8.5)
Was sturdy and strong defensively, fending off the challenges from Arsenal forwards.
Aymeric Laporte (8.5)
Just like Stones, Laporte was solid in defence and sprayed some fantastic diagonal balls to switch the point of attack.
Benjamin Mendy (7.5)
Lost the ball a few times but was always in the game to recover lost situations. The Frenchman was calm in cutting it back for Silva to score City’s second.
Fernandinho (8)
The Brazilian did his job without fuss, winning second balls in the midfield and keeping the team ticking.
Bernardo Silva (8.5)
Played in a central midfield role and looked at home. Scored a fabulous goal to kill the game off in the second half.
Ilkay Gundogan (7)
The German was steady in the midfield without being flamboyant. Good ball movement in central areas was one of his main traits.
Raheem Sterling (9)
The Englishman had a short pre-season due to World Cup engagements, and this was his first game after return. However, the way he played was just out of this world. The goal he scored was breath-taking.
Sergio Aguero (7)
Should have scored in the second half or should have squared it to Kevin de Bruyne, but the Argentine did neither. His movement was good but sometimes, the final product was lacking.
Riyad Mahrez (7.5)
An impressive debut from the Algerian. He was a constant menace to Arsenal down that right-hand side.
Substitutes
Kevin de Bruyne (Subbef on after 60 mins) (7)
Came on and just settled down in the midfield without any trouble. The Belgian, in fact, added the threats with incisive passing.
Gabriel Jesus (Subbed on after 79 mins) (N/A)
Didn’t have much time to impact.
Read More: Rating Man City’s transfer window at 7/10 – Pep should have signed a defensive midfielder
Leroy Sane (Subbed on after 87 mins) (N/A)
Didn’t have much time to impact.