Arsenal duo Kai Havertz and Jurrien Timber both registered a worrying statistic in the Gunners’ pulsating 2-2 draw against Manchester City.
Havertz, who played the entire match, failed to complete a single pass from five attempts while Timber was unable to do so from six attempts during his 92-minute stint on the park.
Stats site Opta claims it was the first time outfield players since 2003-04 played over 89 minutes of a Premier League match and were unable to complete a single pass.
Had the contest comprised only the second half, the damning statistic may have been understandable.
Arsenal had been reduced to 10 men after Leandro Trossard was sent off just before half time after he picked up his second yellow for colliding into Bernardo Silva.
Despite playing the entire game, Kai Havertz did not complete a single pass against City
The German was forced to do serious work off the ball after Arsenal went down to ten men
Dutch defender Jurrien Timber also failed to complete a pass to a teammate in the 2-2 draw
Mikel Arteta’s side was forced to set up camp on the edge of their box and defend deep as they faced relentless waves of City attacks.
The Gunners essentially defended with six at the back and three in midfield, moving from side-to-side whenever City would look to zip the ball to either flank.
It looked like the great wall of Arsenal would work wonders as the clock ticked closer to full time.
But City defender John Stones, who came on for Kyle Walker in the 78th minute, shattered Arsenal’s hearts into pieces when he scored a 98th minute equaliser.
In the first half, City took the lead through Erling Haaland when he latched onto a perfect pass from Savinho and toe-poked the ball past David Raya.
Haaland’s early strike was also his 100th Premier League goal for City from just 105 appearances and took his season tally to 10, five ahead of Liverpool’s Luis Diaz.
However, City’s lead would last just ten minutes as Gunners defender Riccardo Calafiori proved to be an unlikely hero.
The Italian smashed home a curling first-time effort from outside of the box and raced over to Arsenal’s bench to celebrate.
Havertz failed to make a significant impact up top for Arsenal against Manchester City
John Stones rescued a late point for City after Arsenal looked on course for a famous win
There was devastation etched on the Gunners’ faces after they conceded the equaliser
Gabriel then nodded the Gunners ahead with a towering header in first-half stoppage time, but it was not to be courtesy of Stones.
The result preserved City’s unbeaten start to the season as they remained top of the table.
As for Arsenal, the draw was their second of the season and ended the weekend in fourth.