As the final whistle sounded at the Etihad on Sunday Rodri collapsed on his back midway inside the
Arsenal half. The Spaniard had produced another peerless performance in the engine room as
Manchester City battled to a 0-0 draw with title rivals Arsenal. And battle it was. The Gunners were aggressive and tenacious, particularly in the first half. Bernardo Silva was fouled three times in the opening quarter and the Gunners continued to adopt a confrontational approach. Gabriel Jesus was lucky to avoid a caution in the first half as tackles rained in. City fronted up but it seemed a clear message from the visiting camp to ensure they were not out-fought having crumbled here last season in a damaging 4-1 defeat that proved the catalyst for their title challenge downfall. READ MORE: Pep Guardiola's Anthony Taylor verdict amid Man City frustration with Arsenal tactics READ MORE: Roy Keane delivers brutal Erling Haaland 'League Two player' putdown as Man City and Arsenal draw This time City couldn't break them down and Arsenal's streetwise approach, which saw them commit 20 fouls to City's nine and yet the only yellow cards Anthony Taylor saw fit to distribute were to Jesus for kicking the ball away and David Raya for time wasting. City will be nursing sore limbs and bodies on their Bank Holiday off. But they won't have a chance to rest for long. Aston Villa are in town on Wednesday to kick off an eight-game April that will define the campaign across three competitions. Guardiola is angry with the fixture schedule which sees his side play an away
Champions League quarter-final three days before a Wembley FA Cup semi-final for the fourth year running. He has a point on the fixture list, which impacts City more than
Liverpool and Arsenal given the latter two are no longer in the FA Cup. Guardiola saw Nathan Ake limp out of Sunday's game in the first half, with Ederson and Kyle Walker already sidelined. John Stones was only fit enough for the bench and City's relatively small, if quality-filled, squad will be tested by the schedule. Arsenal's aggression won't have helped in what was a physical and mental battle, even if Guardiola was sanguine about the Gunners' tactics after the contest. "Nothing wrong happened, the referee I think was really, really good," he said when asked about the number of fouls against his side and Arsenal's delaying tactics. "I think we competed really, really well," concluded his opposite number. You sensed Mikel Arteta was pleased with the point. Guardiola mused that leaders Liverpool are now title favourites, followed by Arsenal and then City. Whether that was mind games or honest thoughts, City face a test like none they've tackled before over the coming weeks. "We are exhausted," said the City chief on Friday. He and his squad will need to summon all the energy they can during the run-in.