Arsenal Vs Manchester City: 5 things we learned – Unai Emery got it wrong

Arsenal travelled to the Etihad Stadium on Sunday afternoon to face Manchester City. Here are five things we learned from the 3-1 defeat.

In the end, that was all rather predictable. Arsenal went to Manchester City, tried to play deep and frustrate their opponents, failed within one minute, and then allowed the champions to dictate the game from that point forward. The 3-1 defeat was utterly emphatic, with Unai Emery continuing his winless run against Pep Guardiola.

Find the latest episode of the Pain in the Arsenal Podcast here — Man. Utd Madness; Transfer Travesty

Here five things we learned from the 3-1 loss.

5. Good God, Stephan Lichtsteiner

Hector Bellerin’s injury was always going to be an issue for Arsenal. His brief absence during the festive period proved that. The fact that he was going to be spending even longer on the sidelines was not a positive. But when Ainsley Maitland-Niles suffered a knee problem last week, the problem only intensified.

Stephan Lichtsteiner was the man who Unai Emery turned to here. Predictably, a one-on-one duel with Raheem Sterling did not end well for the Swiss international, or Arsenal, for that matter. Sterling pressed him into submission whenever he had the ball, darted in behind relentlessly, and assisted Sergio Aguero twice after scampering past the hapless full-back on two occasions.

The one-two for the second goal showed a lack of awareness, with Sterling simply running by Lichtsteiner; the stand and shimmy for the third exposed Lichtsteiner’s utter lack of athleticism and quickness, two key attributes required in a modern-day full-back. Lichtsteiner isn’t good enough. There is no two ways about it. Unfortunately, we may see him again before the end of the season.