Down at pitch level, the referee checked his watch.
The crowd stood, rising into one long chorus of expectation.
Peter Drury's voice dropped to a hush.
"Two teams. Two philosophies. One question: who bends… and who breaks?"
The opening whistle had barely faded before the match snapped into breathless motion.
Manchester City immediately established their rhythm, probing with passes that zipped across the Etihad's pristine surface like tracer fire.
From the touchline, Pep Guardiola stood rigid, arms crossed, eyes darting—already calculating, already twitching with every movement of the ball.
Inside the gantry, Peter Drury's voice laced the action with gravitas.
"Early signs of City dominance… the familiar metronome. Rodri, the fulcrum… Bernardo, ghosting between lines. Arsenal aren't sitting deep—but they're certainly bracing."
Jim Beglin chimed in as Doku glided past Timber on the left flank with a sudden burst.
