Manchester City star Bernardo Silva hit out at Arsenal after Sunday’s thrilling 2-2 draw, criticising the title contenders for not facing his team ‘directly’ at the Etihad Stadium.
Erling Haaland gave Man City the lead early in the match with his tenth Premier League goal of the season so far, slotting the ball past David Raya after breaking through Arsenal’s defensive line, before the visitors equalised with a stunning strike from outside the box from Riccardo Calafiori.
Arsenal went 2-1 up at half-time thanks to a header from Gabriel Magalhaes, the second in as many league games. However, Arsenal were reduced to ten men for the second half after Leandro Trossard was sent off by Michael Oliver just before half-time.
Mikel Arteta opted for a defensive-first strategy in the second half, swapping right-back Ben White for star Bukayo Saka at half-time and ordering Arsenal to stay inside their penalty area for the rest of the game to maintain their lead.
The attack almost proved a masterstroke, but ultimately failed to secure Arsenal the victory. John Stones scored in the 98th minute in the closing stages to ensure City shared the spoils.
Man City’s Bernardo Silva took a swipe at Arsenal after Sunday’s thrilling 2-2 draw
The Man City star appeared to accuse the Gunners of cowardice after the Etihad clash
Mikel Arteta called for a siege after Arsenal were reduced to ten men just before half-time
After the match, Silva slammed the North London club, calling them cowards for “straight up” to Pep Guardiola’s side in their quest for victory.
When asked how Arsenal compares to Liverpool, who challenged City for the title for years under former manager Jurgen Klopp, Silva told TNT Sports: “Well, maybe because Liverpool have already won the Premier League and Arsenal haven’t.
‘Liverpool had also won the Champions League at that time, while Arsenal had not.
‘Liverpool have always been right up against us, to win games. From that perspective, our games against Arsenal are not like the games against Liverpool were, and still are.’
City have not faced Liverpool since the arrival of new head coach Arne Slot, who has made a solid start in charge of the Reds.
Liverpool are second, one point behind leaders City and one point ahead of Arsenal in fourth, after the fifth Premier League weekend of the season.
Silva continued to vent his frustrations towards Arsenal after the match, insisting that Arteta had been using hostile tactics long before Trossard was shown a red card before half-time.
“It all started in the very first second. In the first action we realised what was going to happen. We had a player injured after they sent him down twice in 10 minutes,” he told the Daily Mirror, referring to Rodri’s forced substitution in the early stages.
The Portuguese also suggested that the Gunners should be very happy to leave the Etihad Stadium with a point, despite nearly scoring all three. He also highlighted the role that referee Oliver played in both of Arsenal’s goals.
‘We conceded a goal after the referee called our captain and then didn’t give him a chance to regain his position. The second goal is their usual block on our keeper, which was allowed by the referee.
‘Then the referee allowed a series of time-wasting events to happen. What bothers me most is the many meetings with the FA at the start of each season.
“They tell us that they will control and stop these kinds of situations, but in the end it has no value. They say a lot, but nothing happens!”
Manchester City players and Pep Guardiola were furious after Riccardo Calafiori’s equaliser. Oliver called Bukayo Saka and Kyle Walker to the centre circle, then allowed the City captain to retake his position on the right side of defence.
Gabriel Martinelli took advantage of Walker’s position and was given extra space down the left flank to test the City defence, before passing the ball back to Calafiori, who finished the shot superbly with a curling header.
Arsenal have been very dangerous from set-pieces so far this season, with Gabriel scoring the winning goal from a corner in last week’s 1-0 win over Tottenham in the North London derby.
Arsenal’s players looked distraught after conceding City’s late equaliser, having worked tirelessly throughout the second half to frustrate the champions from inside their own penalty area
Silva insisted fellow title contenders Liverpool ‘are always right up against us, to win games’
The Gunners’ defence has generally improved significantly under Arteta, who are yet to win the Premier League at the Emirates despite finishing second behind City for the past two seasons.
Arsenal had the best defence in the league last season and had conceded just one goal so far this season before Sunday’s thrilling clash at the Etihad Stadium.