William Saliba: Arsenal star contains Erling Haaland as Martinelli lifts Arteta over Guardiola

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Erling Haaland and William Saliba

Erling Haaland had an uncharacteristically silent game after the Arsenal defence managed to contain him during their Premier League clash at the Emirates Stadium on October 7.

The Norwegian phenom failed to register a single shot on target as they went down 1-0 to Mikel Arteta's side - the first time the Gunners had gotten the better of Manchester City in a Premier League clash since 2015.

A wicked deflected shot off Nathan Ake gifted Gabriel Martinelli with the sole goal of the game four minutes from time, sparking massive celebrations in North London.

The win will be a massive shot in the arm in the belief of the Gunners that they can go toe to toe with the defending European champions for the top flight title.

The win aside, the manner in which it was achieved was as impressive as the end result. Arteta's charges executed the perfect gameplan, restricting City's enormous attacking threat.

Per Football.London, the defensive pairing of Gabriel Magalhaes and William Saliba kept their go-to source for goals Haaland in check. Ben White and Oleksandr Zinchenko similarly stood out when the pacy Jeremy Doku was brought on.

At one point in the second half, a long ball was floated towards Haaland, resulting in a foot chase between the former Borussia Dortmund striker and Saliba. The French defender bodychecked the gigantic striker, leaving him sprawling on the floor.

Haaland was agitated after Michael Oliver beckoned him to get up and play on. It was the summary of a frustrating afternoon for the striker, who hasn't scored since September 23.