As the fifth meeting of Manchester City and Arsenal in 2023 ended like the first, with the only goal going in off Nathan Ake, there was a significant difference. This time, unlike in January’s FA Cup tie, Arsenal were the victors. Ake may have bookended a year where rivalries were renewed with greater frequency with an unfortunate touch, heading Gabriel Martinelli’s shot past Ederson, but it was enough for the majority present to revive a chant from George Graham’s days. One-nil to the Arsenal? It was, and the eventual significance may only be measured in May.
If stalemate had beckoned, if much of the match had the feel of a phoney war, it was nevertheless the case that Arsenal had lost both the battles and the wars beforehand. They had 12 consecutive Premier League defeats against City, no win against them in the division since 2015. The unlucky 13th came for Ake. And if Arsenal’s Community Shield triumph came on penalties and this courtesy of a deflection, there are times when the ends justify the means, when even purists like Mikel Arteta and Pep Guardiola have to focus on the pragmatic impact of the result.
