The chances of Arsenal winning the league are now in jeopardy after their loss to Manchester City, but Mikel Arteta’s team still has a chance to perform well in the final stretch.
The defending champions, Manchester City obtained three points on Wednesday night thanks to a double from Kevin De Bruyne and other players. Pep Guardiola’s club would move to the top with a win in either of the games they still have remaining, but Arsenal still faces some difficult obstacles to overcome.
As Arteta’s men continue to get ready for what lies ahead, the repercussions of the game on Wednesday continue to rule the headlines. Here are the most recent North London news stories.
Ruben’s Decision Explained
Mark Clattenburg, a former Premier League official, has ruled on a contentious incident during Arsenal’s loss. After striking Arsenal defender Ben White of Manchester City, Ruben Dias was not shown a red card, but Clattenburg has defended the official’s decision not to do so.
Clattenburg told BT Sport, “I think what they did was seek for a probable red card.” “Did Ruben Dias kick out Ben White with any force during the challenge?”
He said, “He didn’t; it was more of a petulant kick, thus the VAR was right in determining that it was a yellow card offence. Oliver booked Dias, but David Coote, who was serving as the VAR, didn’t feel the need to increase the penalty.
De Bruyne’s Winning Tactics
Kevin De Bruyne, a midfielder for Manchester City, has discussed the adjustments his squad made in practise before beating Arsenal. The adjustments, albeit often modest, helped the Belgian and his teammates succeed.
“Normally we play with two number eights and I think [Pep Guardiola] wanted a little bit more control because of the way they press,” De Bruyne . “So Gundo [Ilkay Gundogan] would be a double six and I had to choose more the moments, depending on who presses out of Xhaka and Partey – if Partey was pressing I would try to go on his back and the other way round, and it was difficult for [Rob] Holding and Gabriel.
“[They had to decide] do they have to go with me or are they staying with Erling? I couldn’t find the moments in the first half, and obviously, they switched a little bit in the second half, but I was a little more free today.”
Ramsdale Urges His Team
Following their midweek setback, Arsenal goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale has urged his team to win their final five games and “see what happens.” The Gunners still have a chance to finish with 90 points, which would be a record for them in the Premier League.
The England international stated, “We’re going to be sad right now, but we haven’t played nine months of Premier League football and played the way we wanted to play to give up with five games left.” “If anything in football is going to happen, it’s going to happen in this league. Stranger things have happened in the Premier League, so it might not matter.
“You see how tight it is at the bottom, and you see how tight it is at the top, so we are going to be pressing every game — with five games remaining and we need to win five games — and we will see how it ends at the conclusion of the season,” said the player.