Manchester City vs. Arsenal: Manuel Pellegrini, Arsene Wenger Post-Game Reaction

Manuel Pellegrini took a subtle shot at Arsenal after the Gunners' 2-0 win over Manchester City on Sunday, praising his opponents' excellent defensive performance by pointing out they defend far worse, per The Daily Telegraph's Henry Winters: 

It was the perfect complisult—part compliment, part insult—to sum up Sunday's clash, as Arsenal played a highly efficient fixture and deservedly won 2-0, severely denting City's chances of repeating as Premier League champions.

Santi Cazorla converted a penalty in the first half after Vincent Kompany brought down Nacho Monreal, and Olivier Giroud found himself on the end of a free-kick from the Spanish midfielder to double their advantage after the break.

Pellegrini did not agree with the penalty decision, but as shared by World Soccer Talk, he didn't believe the penalty was solely responsible the outcome of the match:

As good as the Gunners were, the Citizens manager placed the blame for the final result with his own team, telling reporters they simply weren't good enough, per The Independent's Ian Herbert:

He elaborated on that train of thought, highlighting a lack of creativity, via the Premier League's official Twitter feed:

City now chase league-leaders Chelsea by five points, but Pellegrini refused to accept his club may look back on Sunday's match as the turning point in the title race. As shared by football commentator Kelechi Nkoro, he reminded everyone his squad will still go head-to-head with the Blues:

Counterpart Arsene Wenger was obviously satisfied with his team's performance, telling reporters health was the key factor in his squad's level of play on Sunday, via World Soccer Talk:

The French manager has seen the confidence of his team rise, as he told Arsenal's official Twitter feed:

Cazorla was undoubtedly the top performer on the field, and he received a ton of praise from his manager:

So did midfielder Francis Coquelin, who has emerged as a viable alternative in front of the defence after a difficult start to his Arsenal career. As shared by Squawka Football, Wenger believes his compatriot learned from the hard times:

The Gunners still face a real battle to finish in the top four of the Premier League and qualify for next year's Champions League, but looking ahead at the rest of the season, Wenger felt confident his team would continue on this path:

Sunday's clash was billed as a make-or-break match for both teams, with Arsenal keeping up in the race for the Champions League tickets and City falling further behind Chelsea in the title race.

The Citizens simply haven't looked the same since Yaya Toure left for AFCON 2015, and Pellegrini needs to figure out how to halt his team's slide before the club loses too much ground on the Blues.

Arsenal have their eyes fixed firmly on Southampton and Manchester United, and if the Gunners can replicate Sunday's form for the rest of the season, there's no reason to believe they can't finish this campaign in the top four.

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