Several comments were made after the game by members of the City squad. Stones accused Arsenal of dirty tactics, while Erling Haaland was caught in an expletive war of words with former City star Gabriel Jesus after telling Arteta to "stay humble". However, Gabriel's post-match interview has earned him even more respect from the Arsenal faithful.
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Speaking to TNT Sports Brazil after the game, per the Evening Standard, Gabriel stated that City's emotional reaction to their equaliser was normal, and that he was looking forward to welcoming them to the Emirates Stadium later in the season. The South American, who also played down the incident with Haaland, commented:
"It’s normal, they were happy after scoring in the last minute. They were playing at home, so their duty was to win the match, but our team did really well to resist.
"It’s a battle, a war, so it’s normal to have provocative acts in football, it’s part of the game. Now this is over and we are waiting for them at our ground."
The classy response prompted Arsenal fans over on Reddit to praise the former Lille defender, with many expressing their admiration for the 26-year-old's mentality. One supporter stated that Gabriel's words were "a classy response from a classy player". Another compared his reaction to that of many of City's stars, saying: "The difference between this interview and Man City's 20 interviews about Arsenal is astounding: One is classy and respectful, the others are just cope and hate."
The consensus was that fans were happy to see actions speaking louder than ones, summed up by another comment that simply read: "I like that. Let’s do the talking on the pitch."
GIVEMESPORT Key Statistic : Gabriel ranks in the top one per cent for blocked shots in the Premier League this season (8).
Another moment that was spotted after City's late leveller was when Erling Haaland threw the ball at Gabriel's head while celebrating Stones' late equaliser. While the defender was quick to say that he didn't remember it happening, that didn't stop Arsenal legend Ian Wright from calling Haaland out for his 'cowardly' move. The pundit said:
"Throwing the ball in Gabi's head when he's not looking. When Gabi's back's turned to him. Real coward's move.
"Gabi would look him in the eye, you know. I'm looking at this as a really good defender vs striker for the years to come, them two. I love watching them two. And then you're doing a coward's move like that."
It has since been confirmed that the FA are not looking into any retrospective action over the incident or any of the melee that occurred after the full-time whistle.
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