John Stones reveals what Pep Guardiola told him before Manchester City equaliser against Arsenal | OneFootball

Manchester City’s John Stones has revealed what Pep Guardiola told him before his last-minute equaliser in their Premier League clash against Arsenal.

After a tremendous start to Sunday afternoon’s encounter, with Erling Haaland scoring after just nine minutes, Pep Guardiola’s men suffered a setback when Rodri was forced off with an injury.

An immediate sucker-punch came straight afterwards when Riccardo Calafiori scored an equaliser following controversial officiating from Michael Oliver, who called over City captain Kyle Walker and then allowed a quick free-kick to be taken before the hosts were set.

Shortly before half-time, Arsenal grabbed a second through Gabriel Magalhaes, but then saw forward Leandro Trossard sent off for a second bookable offence before the whistle was blown for the interval.

Mikel Arteta’s side moved to a back-five and attempted to grind out a result but were left in pain when John Stones scored a last-minute equaliser, with the spoils being shared at the Etihad Stadium.

The Manchester City defender has often been used in midfield for Pep Guardiola’s side but during his 20-minute outing on Sunday afternoon, he was tasked with helping Erling Haaland in the Arsenal box.

Instead of setting up the Norwegian international striker, John Stones was the player in the right place at the right time to score after a goalmouth scramble and rescue a point, to maintain City’s unbeaten start to the campaign.

“He [Pep Guardiola] wanted me to play closer to Erling [Haaland], higher up the pitch, to get more crosses in and hopefully try and win a few aerial duels,” John Stones told Sky Sports after the game.

He continued, “He’s so interchangeable, everyone plays in pockets, so fluid in movements and recognising if someone isn’t their position to occupy it. But I tried to go on and get in the right areas, and it fell for me luckily, and I’m really pleased to score a goal like that.”

While the draw means that Manchester City’s perfect start to the Premier League campaign is over, the Blues remain unbeaten this term and stay top of the English top-flight table – two points in front of Arsenal.

Next up for Pep Guardiola’s men comes a third round Carabao Cup clash against Championship side Watford on Tuesday evening, just 49 hours after the contest against Arsenal came to an end.