Tempers were high as Arsenal attempted to force their way back from a 2-0 half-time deficit away to Manchester City in their blockbuster clash on Wednesday. After Ben White and Ruben Dias clashed near the corner flag, however, frustrations boiled over as the two teams were involved in a mass brawl.
Replays spotted that as White was walking away from the home defender that was laying on the floor, he caught the England defender which sparked a melee that involved several players from both sides.
Dias was shown a yellow card for lashing out at White and while VAR did look at the incident to determine if it needed to be upgraded to a red card, it was deemed that the referee on the pitch made the correct call.
The likes of Bukayo Saka, Granit Xhaka, Jack Grealish, Ederson, Ilkay Gundogan and John Stones were all quickly on the scene as the Gunners were furious at Dias for his kick-out, while the home team attempted to calm the situation down as they held onto a 2-0 lead at the time.
Kevin De Bruyne had given the hosts an early lead, following Erling Haaland’s supreme hold-up play from Stones’ long ball the Belgian latched onto his striker’s pass before taking on the Arsenal defence and then curling an effort from 20 yards past Aaron Ramsdale in the Gunners’ goal.
Just before half-time, a wide free-kick was lofted into the Arsenal box by De Bruyne and met by Stones at the back post as his header flew past the goalkeeper. It was initially deemed offside, but the visitors were denied a reprieve as VAR concluded that Stones was kept onside by White – then in the second half De Bruyne got his second with a composed finish past Ramsdale.
City’s changed tactical setup from a back three in possession to a back four clearly hindered Mikel Arteta’s outfit as they struggled to press high without leaving De Bruyne free in front of their defence.
Former Gunner Patrick Vieira was disappointed with their first-half efforts, as the Belgian playmaker and Haaland were deemed to have too much space to cause damage.
“They [Man City] created a lot of chances and De Bruyne caused them a lot of trouble running down the channel, behind the back four, and I believe that in this first half the Arsenal back four was a bit lacking aggressiveness and De Bruyne had it a bit too easy,” he told BT Sport.
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