Arsenal just managed to do one thing against Manchester City in the Premier League for the first time in eight years.
Arsenal ground out a cagey 0-0 draw against Manchester City on Sunday evening.
Mikel Arteta will likely be happier than Pep Guardiola with the outcome of the match. Whilst the Gunners have now fallen away from top spot in the Premier League table, after Liverpool triumphed over Brighton at Anfield earlier in the day, they remain very much in the title race and have now passed what was likely to be their toughest test in the run-in.
Manchester City will have been considered favourites heading into this fixture, and for good reason, The reigning champions have an incredible home record. Arsenal also have an extremely poor recent record on the road against the Cityzens.
In fact, this match marked the first occasion since 2016 that the north London club have managed to earn even a point away from home against Manchester City in the Premier League.
When did Arsenal last get a point away against Man City?
On that last occasion, eight years ago, goals from Olivier Giroud and Alexis Sanchez earned the Gunners a 2-2 draw. Mohamed Elneny is the only surviving member of the Arsenal squad to have been on the books at the club back then. He started in that 2-2 stalemate, but was not even named amongst the substitutes today.
This time around, not only did the Gunners get a point, but they were also able to keep a clean sheet, despite being up against the likes of Erling Haaland, Kevin De Bruyne, and Phil Foden, amongst others. The Arsenal defence has been outstanding this season, and they demonstrated their quality once again.
Mikel Arteta hails Arsenal progress after Man City draw
Arsenal have now taken four points off of Manchester City this season, after they beat them 1-0 at the Emirates Stadium earlier in the campaign.
These results show just how much progress Arsenal have made recently under the guidance of Arteta. Last season, the Gunners lost both of their league encounters with Manchester City, including a 4-1 defeat at the Etihad Stadium during the run-in which all but ended Arsenal’s title push.
Whilst a win would, of course, have been preferable, avoiding defeat was an absolute must. Arsenal remain in the heat of the title race, with everything to play for, and will take a confidence boost from having gone to Manchester City and avoided defeat for the first time in so long.
Speaking on Sky Sports (31/03/24, 19:02) after the match, Arteta insisted that Arsenal have “made a big step” and “came across in a different way,” compared to their painful experience last season.