Arsenal vs. Manchester City: Score, Reaction from 2016 Pre-Season Friendly
Arsenal rounded out their 2016 pre-season schedule with a 3-2 friendly victory over Manchester City at Ullevi Stadium in Gothenburg, Sweden, on Sunday.
Sergio Aguero opened the scoring with a simple tap-in in the 30th minute before Alex Iwobi pulled a goal back with a curled effort five minutes after the break.
The Gunners were in the ascendancy for much of the contest and went ahead through Theo Walcott around the hour mark before a late strike from Chuba Akpom made it 3-1.
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Kelechi Iheanacho headed in a consolation for City in the dying moments, but the north London club managed to hold on to complete their friendly fixtures with another win.
Arsenal's defensive crisis meant 20-year-old Rob Holding, a summer signing from Bolton Wanderers, was included in manager Arsene Wenger's starting lineup alongside an otherwise strong XI.
For City manager Pep Guardiola, Aguero was joined in attack by Nolito, Raheem Sterling and David Silva as he continued to research his first-choice side.
The match began with a positive approach from both teams, with neither opting to shy away from holding possession; however, neither side managed an attempt on target in the opening 10 minutes.
Aaron Ramsey almost changed that, though, as his floated header found the top of the net following a whipped cross from the right from Alexis Sanchez.
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain continued the Gunners' offensive moments later after Granit Xhaka, another close-season recruit, put him through on goal. The England international skipped past defensive attention to find himself in acres of space, but his chipped attempt over the head of City's reserve goalkeeper, Willy Caballero, dropped wide of goal.
With 22 minutes on the clock, City played themselves into trouble in their own defensive third and almost paid the price. Aleksandar Kolarov was caught by Sanchez attempting a short pass down the left flank. The Chilean then collected the loose ball and picked out Francis Coquelin unmarked by the penalty spot. But the defensive anchorman struck a low shot right to the feet of Fernando.
ESPN FC's Arsenal correspondent Mattias Karen was unimpressed with the Frenchman's attempt on goal:
Against the run of play, City took the lead with 30 minutes played. Sterling collected the ball on the right before sending an early cross toward the six-yard box, with Aguero on hand to tap in from close range.
Five minutes after the interval, second-half substitute Iwobi levelled the scoreline with a curled effort from the edge of the box.
The Nigeria international arrived late into the area to collect Walcott's inaccurate ball from the right side of the pitch and looked composed before setting himself and finding the corner of the net.
Wenger's men responded well to the setback and continued to pressurise the City back line with an energetic approach. Their sustained hounding almost paid off on the stroke of the hour mark, this time via a set-piece move. Sanchez was again at the heart of the danger, as the former Barcelona forward bent a delightful shot on to the crossbar from 25 yards out.
City's defence seemed overrun by Arsenal's forwards at times, and Walcott almost put the north Londoners ahead with a driven effort destined from the bottom corner. However, his international team-mate, Joe Hart, one of a host of changes to both sides in the second period, got down well to tip the strike around the post to keep the score tied.
Arsenal did eventually make their dominance pay when Walcott netted with 18 minutes remaining in the contest. The 27-year-old collected the ball with his back to goal in a central area before bursting into space outside the area. He played a quick return pass with playmaker Sanchez before closing in on goal and delicately lifting the ball over Hart to take a deserved lead in Sweden.
Yaya Toure had a great opportunity to make it 2-2 following an attractive passage of play down the right flank saw Kevin De Bruyne emerge with possession. The Belgian attacker picked out the Ivorian unmarked in the centre of the box, but his experienced midfield partner was unable to launch an attempt on goal, as he blasted his shot miles over the crossbar in a lackadaisical manner.
Arsenal seemed on course to wrap up a convincing victory with five minutes to play after a defensive mix-up by City. Eighteen-year-old rookie Tosin Adarabioyo played an awful ball across the field that Walcott cleverly intercepted, charging in on goal. The pacy winger was unable to get his shot off, as he was closed down inside the area by Kolarov; however, the ball rebounded out to Akpom, who had the simple task of tapping into an unguarded net.
The match was not over as a contest, though, as Iheanacho pulled a goal back immediately. Jesus Navas was given the freedom of Gothenburg down the wing, as his dinked ball into the Arsenal area found the opposition back four flat-footed. The only player on the move was Iheanacho, who darted in to head in from close range.
The match ended on a sour note when Arsenal defender Gabriel Paulista fell to the ground holding his knee in what appeared to be a serious and long-term injury concern.
With the Premier League campaign just days away, the defender being carried off on a stretcher with his leg in a brace won't please Wenger, despite the promising win over their title rivals.
Post-Match Reaction
The fallout from Arsenal's final pre-season exercise was set to surround their strong performance against a fellow club vying for the Premier League trophy. However, following the added-time injury suffered by Brazil international Gabriel, all focus has now shifted to the Gunners' defensive frailties.
With Per Mertesacker already facing a lengthy spell on the sidelines and Laurent Koscielny not up to match fitness, there are serious concerns over Wenger's starting centre-halves.
Per Sami Mokbel of the Daily Mail, the Arsenal boss was quoted as saying at full-time: "We've not made a diagnosis yet, I can't tell you more. (Gabriel's) in pain, let's hope the pain is not a sign of bad news.
It's an ankle sprain, we just need to know how serious. He will be out for next week, we are very short at centre-back."
