Two Arsenal players made unwanted history during their dramatic draw against Manchester City.
The two top teams from last season played an entertaining 2-2 draw at the Etihad Stadium, featuring goals from Erling Haaland, Riccardo Calafiori, Gabriel Magalhaes, and John Stones.
Arsenal went down to 10 men just before halftime when Leandro Trossard received a second yellow card for kicking the ball away.
Despite a strong effort, the Gunners couldn’t secure all three points, conceding a late equalizer to City.
Post-match, a concerning statistic surfaced regarding Arsenal players Kai Havertz and Jurrien Timber. According to Opta Joe, neither Timber (6 passes) nor Havertz (5 passes) managed to complete a single pass during the match, marking them as the first outfield players on record since 2003-04 to play over 89 minutes in a Premier League match without successfully passing to a teammate.
After the match, Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta voiced his frustration with the decision to send off Trossard.
He stated, “It’s very clear and obvious; I hope everyone sees it the same way. My role isn’t to judge what happened but to navigate a challenging environment for 55 minutes and ensure we survive. That’s my focus—the rest is beyond my control.”
Arteta noted, “This is the second time it’s occurred in five games, which is very concerning for the Premier League.”
He added, “Anyone who has played football can see it’s less than a second. The previous incident with Doku was more than a second. It’s that simple.”
Arteta emphasized, “Playing after that is nearly impossible. It’s already tough against 11 players, and we’re forced to defend with six players in our box repeatedly.”
