Two draws but only one team are happy with their lot from the second night of European action this week. Man City celebrate, Arsenal get Euro deja vu – here’s how it all came about.
Borussia Monchengladbach 1 Man City 1
David Silva’s (8.7) equaliser right on half-time sent City into the last 16 of the Champions League with a match to spare.
It was only the Spaniard’s second club goal of a consistently unproductive season thus far, in direct contrast to the man who set it up, Kevin De Bruyne (10.8), who has now either scored or assisted in his last five Man City matches in all competitions.
Pep Guardiola made four changes from Saturday’s win at Crystal Palace, with Silva, John Stones (5.0), Ilkay Gundogan (5.8) and Jesus Navas (6.2) all coming in.
City’s defence – never the most stable of units this season – was further disrupted when Pablo Zabaleta (4.7) failed to travel having picked up a knock.
Fernandinho (5.4) was dismissed late on for a debatable second yellow card, forcing Bacary Sagna (5.3) to forego the total rest Guardiola might have had in mind for him during a final 20+ minutes in which both teams played with a man down.
While City’s defensive concerns pile up, the sight of Sergio Aguero (13.2) limping in the final few minutes was a little worrying for his 46.3% ownership.
In a bizarre last four minutes, Fernando (4.7) stood waiting to replace the striker, only for his team-mates to keep the ball, and their star man on the pitch, all the way through to the final whistle.
Guardiola was quick to banish concerns on Aguero’s plight post-match.
“Yeah, maybe he had a kick – but he is okay.”
So far, there are no reports to suggest the contrary ahead of the Gameweek 13 visit to Burnley.
Guardiola was generally happy with the result, offering us Fantasy managers re-assurance that, as of now, the domestic campaign becomes the single priority.
“We have qualification in the pocket until February, so now we can focus finally on one competition, the Premier League, and we can be so satisfied.”
City’s final group match is now a dead rubber, which will allow Guardiola to rest key players ahead of a tricky December 10 trip to Leicester City.
As for the weekend teamsheet, it’s perhaps Gundogan’s start that appears the most at risk given that a reborn Yaya Toure will be pushing for a recall having be excluded from Guardiola’s Champions League squad. Toure would seem likely to start at Turf Moor, then, with the German, or perhaps even Silva, under threat.
Man City XI: Bravo, Otamendi, Fernandinho, Stones, Kolarov, De Bruyne, Gundogan, Silva, Jesus Navas, Aguero, Sterling (Sagna 67).
Subs not used: Caballero, Fernando, Nolito, Sane, Clichy, Iheanacho.
Arsenal 2 Paris St Germain 2
While City players celebrated finishing second in their group, Arsenal failed to take their chance to avoid doing just that – and may again live to regret it.
Arsene Wenger had called on his players to get the job done against PSG, only for the visitors to do a job on the Gunners, out-shooting their hosts 14-5 in a match they controlled for large periods.
The Arsenal boss made four changes from the side that drew at Old Trafford.
Chief among them was striker Olivier Giroud (8.8) starting, with Theo Walcott (7.8) dropping to the bench and Alexis Sanchez (11.3) shunted back to the flank – a scenario that both Walcott and Sanchez owners will now fear could become a regular occurrence.
Giroud is certainly in scoring form. His penalty against PSG was his fifth goal in as many matches in all competitions for the Gunners. In a decidedly ironic twist, the spot kick was earned by Sanchez.
Arsenal’s second on the night came from a Marco Verratti own goal, but they couldn’t keep their lead as Alex Iwobi (5.8) contrived to head past David Ospina (4.8) when the keeper looked to have a PSG effort well covered.
That pair, together with Kieran Gibbs (4.8) coming in for Nacho Monreal (5.9) at left back, were the other changes Wenger had made to the team.
The Gunners still have a slight chance of winning the group, but it involves the French champions slipping up at home to a Ludogrets Razgrad outfit beaten 6-0 at The Emirates.
Wenger must now decide whether to field a full-strength side away at Basel in the faint hope that PSG come a cropper.
It seems rather more likely that he will rest key men ahead of the Gameweek 15 visit of Stoke City, but doubts will remain right up to the European match on December 6 – the worst-case scenario for FPL bosses trying to manage the Arsenal resources in their squads.
As for the weekend, Walcott’s owners will be hoping for a recall after Wenger confirmed he was benched due to a minor toe injury:
‘Walcott has a slight problem with his toe. I have plenty of players who are fresh and available and need games. So i try to rotate a little bit and keep the balance depending upon the opposition and that’s why I brought Giroud back in.’
Meanwhile, Sanchez’ remaining 22% ownership will be willing their man to return to the central striker role as he bids to end a miserable run at the Emirates: only one of his six goals this season has arrived in home matches.
Arsenal XI: Ospina, Jenkinson (Oxlade-Chamberlain 81), Mustafi, Koscielny, Gibbs, Ramsey, Coquelin (Walcott 80), Sánchez, Özil, Iwobi (Xhaka 78), Giroud.
Subs not used: Cech, Gabriel, Monreal, Elneny.
