Pain in the Arsenal
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Arsenal Vs Manchester City: Player ratings – Quality City carve open

By Andrew Dowdeswell

LONDON, ENGLAND - AUGUST 12: Unai Emery, Manager of Arsenal speaks with Mesut Ozil of Arsenal during the Premier League match between Arsenal FC and Manchester City at Emirates Stadium on August 12, 2018 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND - AUGUST 12: Unai Emery, Manager of Arsenal speaks with Mesut Ozil of Arsenal during the Premier League match between Arsenal FC and Manchester City at Emirates Stadium on August 12, 2018 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images) /
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LONDON, ENGLAND – AUGUST 12: Unai Emery, Manager of Arsenal speaks with Mesut Ozil of Arsenal during the Premier League match between Arsenal FC and Manchester City at Emirates Stadium on August 12, 2018 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND – AUGUST 12: Unai Emery, Manager of Arsenal speaks with Mesut Ozil of Arsenal during the Premier League match between Arsenal FC and Manchester City at Emirates Stadium on August 12, 2018 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images) /

Arsenal hosted Manchester City on the opening weekend of the Premier League season on Sunday afternoon. Here are the player ratings from the 2-0 loss.

Arsenal were handed a difficult start to the season when they hosted Manchester City on the opening weekend of the Premier League campaign. It was always going to be a tough match. So it proved. City were excellent for large portions of the game, carving open their hosts early on and then dictating play with the protection of a lead from that point on. Unai Emery will be disappointed to start with a defeat, but sometimes the quality of the opposition simply has to be accepted.

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Here are the player ratings from the 2-0 defeat.

LONDON, ENGLAND – AUGUST 12: Petr Cech of Arsenal looks dejected after conceding Manchester City’s first goal during the Premier League match between Arsenal FC and Manchester City at Emirates Stadium on August 12, 2018 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND – AUGUST 12: Petr Cech of Arsenal looks dejected after conceding Manchester City’s first goal during the Premier League match between Arsenal FC and Manchester City at Emirates Stadium on August 12, 2018 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images) /

Goalkeeper

Petr Cech – GK: 7.5 – Man of the Match

There were a number of concerning moments with the ball at his feet. That is perhaps the greater consequence for the season ahead. But for this game alone, his work as a shot-stopper was outstanding, making a series of excellent saves. Sterling in the first half, a double save from a Mahrez freekick, denying Sergio Aguero who was one-on-one in the second half. The fact that he is the Man of the Match says more about others than it does Cech, in all honesty.