Arsenal vs Man City: 3 mistakes Pep Guardiola made in the defeat to the Gunners
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Pep Guardiola's mistakes that cost them against Arsenal || Credit: Imago

Arsenal vs Man City: 3 mistakes Pep Guardiola made in the defeat to the Gunners

Stephen Oladehinde 19:54 - 08.10.2023

Pep Guardiola played a solid team against Arsenal but made a few mistakes which led to their loss against the Gunners.

Arsenal finally got the better of Manchester City by defeating them 1-0 for the first time since December 2015.

Gabriel Matinelli’s deflected goal late in the second half was enough to hand Mikel Arteta’s side the deserved victory.

Although the victory didn't just come without some mistakes made, we take a look at three mistakes Guardiola made that led to their defeat.

Arsenal vs Man City Premier League clash || Credit: Imago
Arsenal vs Man City Premier League clash || Credit: Imago

1. Not using a natural winger

The first mistake Pep Guardiola made in this game that cost him was not using a natural winger who can give Arsenal fullback’s problems.

Guardiola played a front three of Foden, Alvarez and Haaland, with the two players who played as a winger not being a natural winger.

This affected the progression of Man City's attack and both players were unable to pose any threat to the Arsenal defence.

Foden and Alvarez who played on the flank also caused their top striker Erling Haaland to get isolated all through the game.

Failing to use a natural winger in Grealish and Doku who were left on the bench was a big mistake by Guardiola.

Jeremy Doku in action for Man City || Credit: Imago
Jeremy Doku in action for Man City || Credit: Imago

2. Failing to use Matheus Nunes as Rodri's replacement

Another mistake Pep Guardiola made was not using a player who could give his team a similar style of play to Rodri.

Rodri missed the game against Arsenal after collecting a straight red card against Nottingham Forest which led to a three-match ban.

Guardiola’s selection against Arsenal showed that there was no player that could give him a similar style to Rodri in the starting eleven.

He left Matheus Nunes on the bench and played Rico Lewis who is not experienced enough to help City’s midfield like Rodri.

Leaving Matheus Nunes who can play a similar style to Rodri on the bench was a wrong call for Guardiola and it cost his team in this game.

Matheus Nunes in action for Man City || Credit: Imago
Matheus Nunes in action for Man City || Credit: Imago

3. Not doing the right substitution in attack.

Guardiola’s substitution in attack was not really the best in this game. He brought in the right players and took off the wrong players.

The Man City manager made three substitutions in the second half but one of the substitutions he made in attack was wrong.

Jeremy Doku was brought in to replace Julian Alvarez which was a wrong call by Guardiola. He should have left Alvarez and substituted Haaland for Doku.

Leaving Alvarez could have helped him in attack because the forward is good at link-up play and can draw defenders out, leaving enough space for Doku to exploit.

Guardiola’s attacking substitution also affected his team towards the end of the game and left them with few shots on target.