Player Ratings: Arsenal 1-3 Manchester City (Premier League)

Manchester City secured all three points and raced to the top of the Premier League table following a mammoth victory over their closest title challengers Arsenal on Wednesday night.

The game was unsurprisingly cagey throughout with both sides refusing to budge, until Kevin De Bruyne opened the scoring following a lapse of concentration from Arsenal full-back Takheiro Tomiyasu, after some good pressing by Jack Grealish.

Arsenal levelled the scoring just before half-time thanks to a perhaps soft penalty decision.

The spot-kick was converted by Bukayo Saka, leaving the second half perfectly poised for an entertaining spectacle.

Manchester City capitalised on another defensive error, seizing the moment to go back in front through Jack Grealish’s strike.

Erling Haaland would convert a chance following some slick build-up play, with Kevin De Bruyne obviously at the heart of it all to seal an important victory.

The game ended 3-1 to Manchester City with the scoreline justifying the performance from both sides, with Arsenal being limited to just the one shot on target all evening.

With that being said, here is how we rated the individual performances of Manchester City’s players at the Emirates Stadium!

Starting XI

Ederson – 4

Despite some razor sharp distribution throughout the game, Ederson had a particularly flustered first half, picking up an ill-judged yellow card in the 35th minute and clumsily conceding a penalty minutes later.

Kyle Walker – 7

A solid display from Kyle Walker, keeping Martinelli quiet all evening which is no easy task. Despite picking up a silly yellow card for re-entering the field too early after a brief injury, Walker stuck to his task and ensured Arsenal found no joy down the left-hand side.

Ruben Dias – 8.5

The commanding presence of the Portuguese defender was certainly felt for City tonight. A few vital challenges most notably in the first half, denying Arsenal in a 2v1 situation threatening the City goal.

Dias seems to be finding his feet again after recent injury issues, and performances like tonight will certainly help his chances at becoming a mainstay in defence.

Nathan Ake – 7.5

The Dutch defender demonstrated why he is so reliable for Pep Guardiola now. Covering for the makeshift left-back in Bernardo Silva effectively, as well as making his presence felt centrally, Nathan Ake was superb again tonight.

Bernardo Silva – 8

It’s no secret Bernardo Silva loves a big game, and his performance proved exactly that. Operating in an unorthodox and unfamiliar role, Bernardo was tasked with marking high-flying Bukayo Saka and did so brilliantly, keeping him at bay and shutting him out for large parts of the game, and it was his quick-thinking which created the move for City’s second goal.

Rodri – 8

A typically brilliant performance from Rodri tonight. He won’t receive the plaudits like other players will, but he deserves to have his praises sung, controlling the midfield and dictating the tempo like always.

Ilkay Gundogan – 7.5

Picking up the key assist for the Jack Grealish goal, Gundogan had a solid display tonight and didn’t put a foot wrong, leading City to victory as the captain.

Kevin De Bruyne – 9 (MOTM)

De Bruyne looked back to his best tonight. An innovative finish for the first goal and a brilliant assist for City’s third, the Belgian was instrumental right throughout. His impact when he’s at his best is unparalleled and De Bruyne was ultimately the difference maker for City tonight.

Riyad Mahrez – 6.5

The Algerian did his job for 60 minutes before being replaced by Manuel Akanji.

Erling Haaland – 9

Haaland probably justified a high rating without the goal, but it was topped off with a superb performance from the striker.

Putting himself about like a classic number 9, giving the two Arsenal centre-backs a torrid time all evening, Haaland looked fit and sharp following potential doubts about his fitness prior to the game.

Jack Grealish – 9

We probably saw his best performance in a Manchester City shirt.

Applying the pressure to force the mistake for the first goal, before neatly converting the second. Grealish was electric tonight, and we want to see that calibre of performance more often.

Substitutes:

Manuel Akanji – 6

An untroubled evening for Akanji tonight who replaced Riyad Mahrez after 60 minutes.

Phil Foden – 6

Replaced Jack Grealish who seemingly picked up a knock, as City would score not too long after Phil Foden’s arrival.

Kalvin Phillips – N/A