Manchester City huffed and puffed, and in the 98th minute, a goalmouth scramble finished off by substitute John Stones forced 10-man Arsenal to settle for a hard-fought 2-2 draw at the Etihad on Sunday.
City accumulated nearly 90% possession and attempted 28 shots during a second frame they dominated following Leandro Trossard’s first-half red card. And just when it looked like Arsenal would deal City their first home defeat since November 2022, Stones popped up to keep the reigning atop the Premier League with a 4-1-0 record.
Pep Guardiola’s side now has 13 points, one more than Liverpool and Aston Villa. Arsenal sit fourth with 11 points.
The match started on a high note for the hosts. After just nine minutes, Erling Haaland notched his 100th goal for City in his 105th match for the club, reaching the century mark for a single club in joint-record time. But the lead barely lasted a quarter of an hour as Riccardo Calafiori rifled in a sensational equalizer on his full debut for Arsenal.
The Gunners built on their momentum and forged an advantage in first-half stoppage time through Gabriel Magalhaes, who left Kyle Walker in his wake as he headed in his sixth Premier League goal since the start of last season, the most any center-back has scored in that time in the English top flight.
But a red card just before halftime halted Arsenal’s ascendancy. Already on a yellow card, Trossard was sent off for kicking the ball away in frustration, leaving Mikel Arteta’s men down to 10 men for the entire second half.
The final stat line reads like a classic tale of David and Goliath, with City amassing 33 shots to Arsenal’s five. The reigning champions also completed 699 passes against the visitors’ 202.
But the point is valuable for Arsenal and means City’s perfect start to the season is over.
Further damage to City’s chances of repeating as champions for a fifth consecutive time may have come in the form of an injury to influential midfielder Rodri, who limped off in the first half with an apparent knee injury. City were already without Kevin De Bruyne for the blockbuster fixture, but Guardiola said before kickoff that his injury isn’t serious.
