Positives & negatives from Arsenal 1-1 Manchester City

Arsenal salvaged a point thanks to a moment of brilliance from substitutes Eberechi Eze and Gabriel Martinelli to earn a 1-1 draw with Manchester City at the Emirates Stadium.

Martinelli played super sub for the second time in a matter of days, coming off the bench to rescue a point for a generally undeserving Arsenal side, via a well-taken lob over Gianluigi Donnarumma in injury time. The goal, created by Eze's precision pass over the top, cancelled out Erling Haalnd's swift and clinical opener after nine minutes to cap a rapid counter from City.

What followed was rugged, but generally drab stuff from two teams that experienced their own identity crisis. City tried to park the bus, soak up pressure and win with a stubborn rearguard.

It was hardly the Pep Guardiola way, so there wasn't much surprise when the visitors buckled late. Things were different for the Gunners, who spent almost the entire the match with the onus on them to play on the front foot and attack with fluency.

Unfortunately, those things aren't what the Mikel Arteta era is all about.

Positives & negatives from Arsenal 1-1 Manchester City

Negative #1: Defensive team selection

Arteta keyed in default settings for this one and leaned into the one thing he does well. Setup to defend. That explained a negative team selection, despite Arsenal playing at home and having better overall momentum than City.

Those things were lost on the gaffer, who kept Martinelli on the bench for too long, despite the Brazilian's dynamic and direct brilliance in the UEFA Champions League. Things were just as pedestrian in the middle of the park, where Arteta eschewed starting Eze as a No. 10, or even handing a start to bright young playmaker Ethan Nwaneri.

Instead, Arteta's starting XI reflected depressingly familiar themes. All experience and muscle, but woefully short on imagination and inspiration. So Mikel Merino began in the most advanced midfield role, while Leandro Trossard occupied the left flank.

Shunning creativity has been a long-running theme during Arteta's stewardship, and the latest example sold the focal point of Arsenal's attack painfully short.