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Manchester City player ratings for their Premier League game with Arsenal that saw Pep Guardiola's side win 2-1
18:27, 19 Apr 2026Updated 18:30, 19 Apr 2026
Manchester City gained a crucial victory in the Premier League title race with a 2-1 win over Arsenal at the Etihad. The Blues beat the league leaders in a pulsating afternoon that saw both sides try to land the decisive blow.
Rayan Cherki danced through the Arsenal defence to give City an early lead in a goal that the hosts hoped would open the floodgates. However, Gianluigi Donnarumma was caught in possession seconds later to gift Arsenal an equaliser.
City huffed and puffed but could not find another way through until the 65th minute when Nico O'Reilly's cross found Erling Haaland in what proved to be the winning goal. Here are the player ratings from the Manchester Evening News for the City players.
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Donnarumma: A horrible error that could have cost City dearly, but he recovered, made some good saves and played a part in the winner. 6
Nunes: Was targeted aerially and had some nervy moments but also did well for Cherki's goal and kept pushing up. 7
Khusanov: A monster at the back, mopping up everything that came in his and working well with Rodri and Guehi. 8
Guehi: Nearly played City into trouble in the second half and also earned a booking, but he got plenty right. 7
O'Reilly: One of the best players in the league in this form and he was decisive again when the team needed it. 9
Silva: Absolutely everywhere again, stopping dangerous Arsenal attacks and popping up in their box to help the City attack. 8
Rodri: Essential to protecting the defence and also launched some wonderful crossfield balls to start City attacks. 8
Semenyo: Got into lots of dangerous positions but it wasn't his afternoon with that final ball or shot never paying off. 6
Cherki: What a goal to open the scoring, showing how he can balance his art with clinical play. Arsenal were never comfortable with him. 8
Doku: Got City out of trouble several times and also played them into it. His partnership with O'Reilly is really strong. 7
Haaland: He should have scored more than one but when you see the effort he put in against the defence in addition to the winning goal it is an excellent display. 8
Substitutes
Foden (for Cherki, 85)
Semenyo (for Doku, 87)
Gonzalez (for Rodri, 87)
Ake (for Semenyo 90)
Not used: Trafford, Stones, Ait-Nouri, Gonzalez, Reijnders, Savinho, Marmoush
Simon Bajkowski
Simon is the Chief Manchester City Writer for the Manchester Evening News, as well as Reach's national titles. He joined the MEN sport desk in 2013 and has covered City home and away since 2016, reporting on Pep Guardiola's time at the club. He took over from Stuart Brennan in 2022 to become chief City writer and followed the team as they made history with the Treble and then four consecutive Premier League titles. Simon has also written a book with insider stories on City's rise called The Blueprint, which was published in 2024.
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