Manchester City star John Stones shares what he thought about Arsenal’s defending last night

Add as preferred source on Google

John Stones has praised Arsenal for making it ‘very difficult’ for Manchester City to pick up a win at the Etihad Stadium last night.

City put in an empathic performance against Mikel Arteta’s side on Wednesday as they picked up a 4-1 win.

Arsenal just weren’t at the races for what was arguably their biggest game of the season to date.

Kevin De Bruyne opened the scoring inside the opening 10 minutes, while John Stones doubled City’s lead right before half-time.

The Gunners did respond through Rob Holding after De Bruyne made it 3-0, but Erling Haaland grabbed a deserved goal after being denied by Aaron Ramsdale on multiple occasions.

And despite the fact that City created plenty of chances on the night, Stones told BT Sport that he was impressed with Arsenal’s pressing.

Stones on Arsenal’s defending

Speaking after the game, Stones admitted that City couldn’t play their usual game due to Arsenal’s relentless energy off the ball.

“We have to give them a lot of respect and credit we didn’t play the football we normally do,” the City star said.

“From both sides, we had man to man pressure and it was very difficult to play our usual passes.”

Arsenal certainly can’t be faulted in terms of their efforts off the ball last night as they attempted to press City high up the pitch.

But City found a way through their press by playing into Erling Haaland, who ensured that both Rob Holding and Gabriel Magalhaes endured a torrid evening.

Of course, Arteta will be bitterly disappointed with last night’s result and particularly the performance.

The Gunners have managed to pick up just three points from their last four games and City are firmly in the driving seat in the title race.