Brentford boss Thomas Frank echoed the thoughts of most football fans when he branded Manchester City’s goalless draw with Arsenal as “boring”.
The highly anticipated clash between City and Arsenal was set to be the game of the season. Yet, when the final whistle blew and no goals were netted, many labelled the fixture as uninspiring.
Bees manager Frank has been honest on his evaluation of the game.
When asked if he enjoyed the encounter, he said: “Not really. I looked forward to watching the game. They’re two of the three best teams in the world, not only in the Premier League.
“So I watched it but I think they cancelled each other out. I admire both [Mikel] Arteta and Pep [Guardiola] hugely for the jobs they are doing. Same style of play, same tweaks, same strategy. Honestly, boring in the end. But of course, world class players, they were on it there’s no doubt about that.”
Neither City nor Arsenal were able to break down their opponents defence and earn a goal at the Etihad. With Arteta’s side planning to sit deep and stifle City’s attacking strength after being left exposed in a 4-1 defeat last April, just three shots on target were produced.
But for Arsenal fans, a goalless draw came as welcome news. The team have not won away at City since Santi Cazorla and Olivier Giroud scored in a 2-0 victory back in 2015.
A point on the road allowed Arsenal to stay ahead of their rivals in the Premier League, where they now sit just two points behind current leaders Liverpool.