Pep Guardiola publicly reprimands Jack Grealish before interrupting the confrontation between Erling Haaland and Gabriel
Pep Guardiola gave Jack Grealish a public reprimand moments before preventing Erling Haaland and Gabriel from colliding.
city of manchester failed to claim three points in a boring 0-0 draw against Arsenal at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday and Guardiola had some choice words for his players on the pitch.
That included Grealish, who came off the bench in the second half but had very little impact as Arsenal defended brilliantly.
And at the end of the match, Guardiola found the England international on the pitch and had a very animated conversation with the winger, who seemed to agree with his coach.
It is not the first time that the City coach has given this type of speech to his players after a game and Jeremy Doku also had his ear open moments before.
However, this animated chat went on for a couple of minutes as Grealish looked focused and listened.
But there was more drama as moments later, Guardiola had to keep the peace as Haaland and Gabriel seemed ready to collide with each other.
The two had been gnawing at each other throughout the match and Guardiola kept the Brazilian at bay as they exchanged annoyances.
However, both Haaland and Gabriel reconciled in the end with a handshake and a hug, canceling each other out on the field.
With both sides looking to make a telling blow in the title race, neither side was able to truly defeat the other.
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In truth, neither goalkeeper was tested too much with both defenses high up, with Guardiola and Mikel Arteta each naming four central defenders in their backlines.
The draw kept Liverpool top of the table, who overtook Arsenal earlier in the day after coming from behind to beat Brighton at Anfield.
Three points separate the top three, with City third after failing to beat Arsenal at home.
Both teams had to deal with key injuries, with Ederson and Kyle Walker absent for the hosts, while Nathan Ake went off injured.
City will face Real Madrid in two weeks in the Champions League, while Arsenal I lost Bukayo Saka late in the contest.
