LONDON — The Arsenal vs Manchester City player ratings were a lot of fun to dish out, as an intense game full of quality took center stage.
MORE — Recap, analysis on Arsenal’s enthralling draw with City
And it ended even, as a brilliant advert for the Premier League played out in north London as respect from both sides towards the other was clear for all to see at the final whistle.
Erling Haaland thought he was the hero after his early goal put Pep Guardiola’s City ahead, but Mikel Arteta made some bold changes and it eventually paid off late on as Gabriel Martinelli lobbed home in stoppage time to make it 1-1.
Below is a look at the Arsenal vs Manchester City player ratings out of 10, with analysis on who stood out and who struggled.
Arsenal player ratings
David Raya: 6 - Didn’t have much to do, did he? Solid enough with crosses into the box and made one good stop from Haaland’s poor finish in the second half.
Jurrien Timber: 7 - Had his hands full with Doku but played well defensively. Also got forward and whipped in some decent crosses and threaded passes into the box.
William Saliba: 6 - Absolutely fine on his return from injury but wasn’t striding out of the back with the ball as he often likes to do. Missed Odegaard in front of him as someone who is always available to receive a pass.
Gabriel: 6 - Lost the initial challenge, and then footrace, with Haaland for City’s goal. Was perhaps caught up in the emotion of the occasion a little too much.
Riccardo Calafiori: 6 - Marauded forward on a few occasions but mostly in his own half locking down the space for Foden to operate in.
Mikel Merino: 5 - Got the nod to start over Eze and struggled to have any real impact on the game before being subbed off at half time. Was too static with his movements and runs.
Martin Zubimendi: 6.5 - Went close to scoring with a curler in the second half and always wanted to get on the ball. Could have picked a more difficult pass forward on occasions.
Declan Rice: 7 - Went on a few surging runs and did his best to get Arsenal going. Missed his mate Odegaard, but was key in Arsenal’s comeback.
Noni Madueke: 7.5 - Fabulous first half. Forced Donnarumma into a couple of top saves and was always so direct with his dribbling and passing. Huge surprise to see him come off at half time but turns out he had a knock.
Viktor Gyokeres: 5 - Struggled to get any balls in-behind to run on to because City were so deep. Dias and Gvardiol handled him expertly and there were moans and groans from the home fans on a few occasions when his touch was loose.
Leandro Trossard: 6 - Buzzed around as always and clipped in some lovely crosses that weren’t finished off. A big call to start him, but it didn’t quite come off.
Substitutes
Bukayo Saka (46' on for Madueke): 6.5 - Great to see him back but after a bright start he faded a little.
Eberechi Eze: (46' on for Merino): 7 - One rasping volley was saved well, then his exquisite pass grabbed a point for Arsenal.
Gabriel Martinelli (80' on for Timber): 7 - What a fine lobbed finish for the equalizer. Proper super sub.
Ethan Nwaneri: N/A
Cristhian Mosquera: N/A
Manchester City player ratings
Gianluigi Donnarumma: 7 - A couple of fine saves from Madueke and Eze and his presence is so reassuring to the City defense. Almost had three shutouts in his first three games. Couldn’t do anything about the equalizer late on.
Abdukodir Khusanov: 6 - Good scrap with Trossard in the first half and made some decent tackles after using his impressive recovery pace. Subbed off with an injury.
Ruben Dias: 7 - Loved every second of this game as he marshaled the City defense and made sure everyone kept their position. Will be disappointed with the equalizer late on after one long ball over the top.
Josko Gvardiol: 7 - See above. His type of game and did well to keep calm when Arsenal piled on the pressure.
Nico O’Reilly: 7 - The youngster did a fine job once again out of position at left back. Madueke had a good go at him but he never gave up and shut things down calmly defensively on more than one occasion.
Rodri: 6.5 - Brilliant to see him start three games in a week. Held his position so well, even if he isn’t quite up to speed mobility wise. But he was calm and professional and didn’t need to press as high.
Bernardo Silva: 6.5 - Worked his socks off, as always, and got hold of the ball when City needed him to ease some pressure. Understands the flow of the game so well.
Phil Foden: 6 - Was going to be tough to replicate his performance from last week, and Arsenal paid very close attention to him. Struggled to get on the ball given how deep City were.
Tijjani Reijnders: 8 - Lovely run and pass for Haaland’s goal and his positioning caused Arsenal so many problems as he linked midfield with attack. Already such a key player.
Jeremy Doku: 8 - What a menace he is. Some lovely runs and helped ease the pressure in the second half. Played Haaland through majestically for a big chance in the second half too.
Erling Haaland: 8 - Proper center forward display in so many ways. Got his goal after initially setting up the chance, then sprinting 70 yards to get on the end of it and finish calmly. He should have scored a second when Doku played him through in the second half on the break too. Won the battle with Gabriel easily before coming off exhausted. That’s because he worked so hard defensively and headed so many clearances away. The display of an emerging leader in this City team.
Substitutes
Matheus Nunes (46' on for Khusanov): 6 - Trossard and Calafiori gave him a tough time, but he hung in there.
Nathan Ake (68' on for Foden): 5 - Kept Martinelli onside for the equalizer late on but defended well before that.
Nico Gonzalez: N/A
John Stones: N/A
Savinho: N/A
