The 2017/18 Carabao Cup final saw Manchester City win convincingly 3-0 against Arsenal at the Wembley Stadium.
Manchester City started off the game in their usual way of doing things – controlling possession. Arsenal held their shape for the first 10 minutes but pretty soon found themselves on the back foot trying to link up on the counter.
A woeful positional error from Shkodran Mustafi found Kun Aguero one-on-one with a wandering David Ospina and the Argentine lobbed it in at the 18th minute. 1-0.
Arsenal tried to make something of the loose balls here and there but were barely capable of entering the City box.
Manchester City were guilty of being sloppy on a few occasions but they tightened up in the second half and found the back of the net in the 58th minute.
A mis-hit shot from Ilkay Gundogan found Vincent Kompany in a crowded Arsenal box and ‘Captain Fantastic’ guided the ball past Ospina. 2-0.
The Gunners resistance was killed off and Pep Guardiola’s men added the third. A failed attempt from Xhaka ended up costing the North London side. David Silva spun off Calum Chambers and drilled it into the far post with his left. 3-0.
Game. Set and Match. The Citizens were pretty much in cruise control after that and picked up their first trophy of the season.
Here is how the Arsenal players were rated.
David Ospina – 5/10
His distribution was far from secure while the opposition were tight on the Arsenal defence. Was far too casual on a few occasions which could have ended up costing the side even more. Can not be blamed for the goals though.
Calum Chambers – 5/10
Got beaten for the third City goal. Not the best marking ability.
Shkodran Mustafi – 4/10
The German’s careless errors are starting to get old. Was too lazy to run back and cover Aguero but instead consorted to complaining to the ref after the ball went into the back of the net. Shambolic.
Laurent Koscielny – 6/10
He was one of the better ones out of the back three.
Nacho Monreal – 5/10
He was prominent on the pitch as an offensive presence but had to be taken off after a short while.
Hector Bellerin – 5/10
Did his usual bit of running up and down the right but was beaten by Sane on the dribble more often than he would have liked.
Granit Xhaka – 5/10
Very poor with possession in tight areas but made up by making key interceptions. Not the best.
Aaron Ramsey – 5/10
He looked lively in the early minutes but pretty much disappeared after that.
Jack Wilshere – 4/10
A frustrating night for Wilshere as he spent the majority of his minutes either hugging the pitch or getting into rows with the City players.
Mesut Ozil – 5/10
Not assertive enough whenever he had the opportunity to. He could have got his side an early lead but his pass towards an open Aubameyang was far too weak.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang – 5/10
He barely touched the ball in the second half. A lack of supply made him a spectator for the majority of the game.
Substitutes:
Sead Kolasinac – 5/10
The Bosnian had a few loose touches on the run. Nothing redeeming.
Danny Welbeck – 4/10
Almost unnoticeable throughout his full length of stay on the pitch.
Alex Iwobi – NA
