Brian Barry-Murphy’s side lifted the PL2 trophy at the Academy Stadium the weekend prior after a 4-3 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers but wanted to make sure they finished this season with a positive result against Arsenal.
And goals from Micah Hamilton, Ben Knight and Carlos Borges helped City finish the 2022/23 campaign with a fourth consecutive league win.
What happened
After an opening 15 minutes of level possession, City found themselves comfortable enough to take charge of our final game of the 2022/23 season.
And City’s top PL2 goal scorer opted for the role of provider for our opening goal. Carlos Borges assisted midfielder Micah Hamilton who gave City the lead in the 18th minute.
After that, Arsenal struggled to have consistent spells of possession that ended with a level of threat in City’s third.
We continued to utilise the momentum gained after the opening goal and continued to overwhelm Arsenal’s defence.
Ben Knight, who has had a positive return to the matchday squad after a lengthy spell on the side line through injury, continued to show his value to Barry-Murphy’s team by adding his name to the scoresheet.
The number seven scored his second goal in two matches in the 29th minute to double City’s lead.
City denied Arsenal any hope of getting a foot back into the game for the remainder of the first half by calmly moving the ball around the pitch and increasing our possession to 60%.
And it didn’t take long for City to show their scoring prowess again. Five minutes into the second half, Borges was this time assisted by Hamilton.
Borges’ goal has provided certainty that he will be named the PL2 top goal scorer with 21 goals - an impressive feat.
Arsenal added to their shots-on-target tally late in the second half but were nothing Mikki Van Sas couldn’t handle with ease.
What it means
City finish the PL2 season on an impressive 59 points, 13 ahead of second-placed Liverpool.
With 18 wins compared to last season’s 16 under Barry-Murphy, City have continued to reach new milestones with each season under the Irishman.
How the teams lined up
Arsenal: Graczyk, Awe, Robinson, Sousa, Monlouis ©, Cozier-Duberry, Cottrell, Henry-Francis, Cirjan, Sagoe Junior, Edwards.
Subs: Cooper, Nwaneri, Ibrahim, Lewis-Skelly, Gower.
City: Van Sas, Samuel, Charles ©, Susoho (Agyemang 62), Taylor, Robertson, Knight (Mebude 63), Adam, Bobb, Hamilton, Borges (Dickson 62).
Subs: Agyemang, McNamara, Dickson, Mebude, Sodje.
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