Champions elect? Gary Neville highlights one Arsenal improvement after taking lead vs City

Gary Neville has praised the way Arsenal moved onto the front foot to take a half-time lead against Manchester City on Sunday. 

The Gunners fell behind at the Etihad Stadium to a ninth-minute Erling Haaland strike as the Premier League’s top two from the past two seasons collided.

However, Arsenal responded quickly with summer arrival Riccardo Calafiori curling home his first goal for the club in style on 22 minutes.

But Mikel Arteta’s men weren’t there. Not content to sit on a point or try to catch the defending champions on the break, Arsenal pressed their advantage and found the lead right on half-time as Gabriel powered home a header to convert a Bukayo Saka corner.

Are Arsenal finally champions in waiting for the first time since their 2003/04 season? Gary Neville is certainly impressed by their mentality.

“The Arsenal of last season would have sat back, but they shifted forward,” Neville said in his commentary forSky Sports. “There was an inevitability to it, like last week at Spurs.”

However, if there’s one area Arsenal do need to learn, it’s kicking the ball away after the referee’s whistle, with Leandro Trossard shown a second yellow card for a far more blatant offence than that which Declan Rice was sent off for a few weeks ago.

“Arteta has put his jumper over his head. I don’t think he can complain,” said Neville. “It’s a foul. He barges Bernardo Silva and then he wellies the ball away.

“The reason we know he’s heard the whistle is he half pulls away.”

Top photo by Catherine Ivill/Getty Images