Arsenal impressed despite going down at Manchester City on Sunday but Gary Neville admits their selections at full-back meant they could only do so much in attack
Piero Hincapie was a solid defensive presence for Arsenal, but had a limited influence in the final third
Piero Hincapie was a solid defensive presence for Arsenal, but had a limited influence in the final third
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Mikel Arteta's decision to include Piero Hincapie and Cristhian Mosquera in Arsenal's line up on Sunday "hampered them enormously" with the pair limited in attack, claims Gary Neville.
The Gunners headed to Manchester City for their must-win clash, but were undone by the hosts. Erling Haaland scored a second-half winner to put a massive dent in Arsenal's Premier League title hopes.
The north Londoners came into the contest off the back of some poor form, and they'd been warned not to go to Manchester and sit in hoping for a draw. Their performance landed them plenty of plaudits, but Neville felt they could only do so much going forward due to the duo they selected as their full-backs.
Hincapie and Mosquera were solid defensively, but limited in the final third. That gave City an added dimension with both Nico O'Reilly and Matheus Nunes having huge influence in the final third.
Neville said on his podcast: "Arsenal were hampered enormously by their full-backs. I thought actually they did a good job, Hincapie and Mosquera, they really stuck to their task, but they’re limited on the ball.
"So if you think about Matheus Nunes and Nico O’Reilly for City, or how Jurrien Timber or Riccardo Calafiori or others are for Arsenal, they were just blocked off.
"You haven’t got that subtlety on that ball or that ability, that safe, consistent and reliable ability, to feed the ball in, good touches and passes and getting it into your front players and midfield players because they’re centre-backs effectively, they’re not full-backs.
"So I thought they stuck to the task really well, the two full-backs for Arsenal, but you lose a lot when you lose Timber, you lose a lot. He’s a bit of a powerhouse going forward, he links really well."
Nico O'Reilly has become a hugely influential presence for Man City
Nico O'Reilly has become a hugely influential presence for Man City
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O'Reilly has been hugely influential in City's recent run. He scored a brace to help them beat Arsenal in the Carabao Cup and has continued to come up with big goals. The left-back helped lay on Haaland's matchwinner.
Guardiola said post-match that the academy graduate has enjoyed a stellar year - and backed him to be named the PFA Young Player of the Year.
"Incredible defensively, offensively and set-pieces," he said. "What a player he is becoming, playing different positions. He is exceptional. He had the composure today to take the ball and again arrive in the final third for the second goal. What a season! I don't know if he is the best player or the man of the season, but the young one? Guys, it has to be."
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