Alan Shearer points blame for Arsenal defeat squarely at "bullied" duo

27 April 2023 , 08:06

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Alan Shearer points blame for Arsenal defeat squarely at "bullied" duo

Premier League legend Alan Shearer has blasted Rob Holding and Gabriel Magalhaes for being "bullied" by Manchester City pair Kevin De Bruyne and Erling Haaland.

The two teams met at the Etihad on Wednesday night with the general consensus being whoever won would go on to lift the title. If that is the case, it'll be Pep Guardiola celebrating a fifth triumph in six seasons after his side brushed aside the Gunners with an emphatic 4-1 victory.

Between Haaland and De Bruyne, the duo got three goals and three assists as Mikel Arteta's men failed to deal with either of them from the first whistle. The latter opened the scoring with just six minutes on the clock before adding his second, City's third, after a John Stones header.

Haaland capped off the near-perfect performance with City's fourth in second-half stoppage time, firing home a left-footed strike that squirmed under Arsenal goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale.

The win does not see City leapfrog Arsenal into top spot for the time being, though they are now just two points behind the Gunners with two games in hand and a more favourable run-in betwen now and the season's end.

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With Haaland and De Bruyne in the kind of form that they are currently, it seems unlikely that City will slip up enough to allow Arsenal back in with a chance of ending their 19-year wait for a league title.

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Rob Holding was one half of the Arsenal defensive pairing that was "bullied" against Man City according to Alan Shearer

Shearer waxed lyrical over them in the aftermath of their performance against the Gunners, claiming to Match of the Day: "They [De Bruyne and Haaland] were unplayable tonight, they bullied the two centre-halves Gabriel and Rob Holding."

He went on to add: "It was a magnificent performance from start to finish from Man City, they totally dominated in every position. Some of the play tonight was absolutely magnificent.

"Haaland was too strong, he got one goal, he could of or should of had three or four. His finishing tonight wasn’t like how it has been the rest of the season. Arsenal just couldn’t cope with them tonight, they did bully them."

Arteta could hardly disagree when issuing his own assessment during his post-match media duties.

"The analysis is clear: the better team won the game," the Arsenal boss conceded. "They were probably at their best, especially in the first half, and we were nowhere near our level.

"When that happens, the gap becomes too big and in the first 30 minutes we didn’t do all the basic things that you have to do against an exceptional team, in terms of competing, winning duels and understanding what the game requires."

Josh O'Brien