Who would be an Arsenal fan, eh?
You go into a game against the wounded defending champions off the back of a morale-boosting victory on the road, feeling perhaps that it could be the game on which your season turns 180 degrees and starts heading in the right direction again.
Then Kevin ‘Best Player in the Premier League’ de Bruyne turns up and you’re 3-0 down and booing your team with all you have by 6.15pm.
Kevin De Bruyne. Best player in the Premier League. No doubt about it.
— Alex Goldberg (@AlexGoldberg_) December 15, 2019
Probably said it before, will probably say it many times in the future – but Kevin de Bruyne is the best player in the Premier League. Sterling, Mane & Salah all up there too for output – but KdB the best footballer.
— Manish Pandey (@_ManishPandey) December 15, 2019
In truth, the 3-0 defeat was by no means the worst performance Arsenal will have all season, but they found themselves second best to a City side who were reeling from a Manchester Derby defeat last time out.
They had to win to keep any chance of retaining their Premier League title alive, and they had the lead within 90 seconds after a spectacular half-volleyed finish from the Belgian.
The midfielder was in the mood, and put the Gunners to the sword in one of the best individual 45 minutes you are likely to see from a player this season.
He’d assist Raheem Sterling for the second goal on 15 minutes, and then add a third with a terrific left-footed effort that secured the win – with 50 minutes of football
He was then denied a hat-trick by Bernd Leno, who sprung to tip a goal-bound, curling effort onto the post – a move some thought was quite frankly disrespectful.
I don’t think it’s right of Leno to deprive De Bruyne of a hat trick of that quality.
— Max Rushden (@maxrushden) December 15, 2019
OFF THE POST AND WHAT A SAVE!!! That would just have been the cherry on the icing on the cake from Kevin de Bruyne – it’s another beautiful curling effort from the edge of the box, but he’s denied his hattrick by a brilliant hand by Leno to tip it onto the post! (0-3)#ARSMCI
— Football Chatters (@FootballChat555) December 15, 2019
Still gutted Leno makes the save on that 3rd De Bruyne shot. Would be such special hattrick (and goal)
— ALICE (@arrishu7678) December 15, 2019
The first half was hugely entertaining but the second gave us precious little, allowing Gunners fans to reflect on their misery in the peace and quiet as City saw it out.
The main incident of note from an Arsenal perspective came when Mesut Ozil was substituted, and though it wasn’t quite a Granit Xhaka-esque flashpoint, he found himself booed by his own fans as he left the field – and didn’t react too kindly.
Most aggression I’ve seen from him in 5 years
Ozil & his agent have destroyed the club. When he won and the manager was sacked Arsenal fans did not understand they sacked the wrong person. The longer Ozil stays at the club the longer it will take to come back.— Michael Bennett (@bennomh) December 15, 2019
Ozil should perform on the same level as Salah Mane, De Bruyne, D. Silva and so on with that kind of salary. But the fact that he has never taken that responsibility shows he is not willing to improve either.
— Footie Analyzer (@AnalyzerFootie) December 15, 2019
It wasn’t all negatives from an Arsenal standpoint, however. They were simply overrun by a far superior team, and though impressive individual performances were few and far between, young forward Gabriel Martinelli caught the eye with his commitment to the cause in difficult circumstances.
Perhaps an indication that the future is bright, even if the present isn’t.
Martinelli putting his senior colleagues to shame by doing nothing exceptional but just showing the energy and hunger levels required of a professional footballer.
— Dr. Mohammed Amali (@MoAmali) December 15, 2019
Arsenal is finishing the game with:
Martinelli (18)
Saka (18)
ESR (19)
Guendouzi (20)
Willock (20)We ain’t reaching top4. Just give youth a chance in PL (specially defenders) and see who is ready and go into rebuild next season with a new coach. Sell the deadwood. ⚪️
— AfcVIP⁴⁹ (@VipArsenal) December 15, 2019
Let’s be honest, no one were expecting a result here, and it’s sad. Martinelli is a demon btw, we need to build a team around him in the next season.
— Renato (@rehnato) December 15, 2019
For more from Robbie Copeland, follow him on Twitter!
Let’