John Stones was not directly to blame for Arsenal’s first goal nor was he obviously culpable for the second. The man at the heart of the early calamity that led to Martin Odegaard’s opener was Manuel Akanji and the key error ahead of Thomas Partey’s strike was made by Phil Foden. But Stones was not clever in both instances - giving a bit of a hospital pass to Akanji and then deflecting Partey’s hit past Stefan Ortega - and was then the man closest to Myles Lewis-Skelly when the talented teenager scored a brilliant third.

And to put the tin hat on matters for Stones, Kai Havertz turned him inside out before belting in the fourth. Yep, 5-1 and even Havertz scored. Stones’ performance was symptomatic of the malaise that has sent Manchester City’s Premier League season into such a tailspin. It was lackadaisical, it was at least half a yard short in terms of pace and awareness, it was nowhere near the rarefied standards he has set down the years. And that is the 2024-25 City.

Quite simply, they have become a defensive disaster waiting to happen in every moment of the game. Yes, one of the key problems has been the absence of the best holding midfielder in world football, the Ballon D’Or winner, Rodri. And it does not help that Stones and Ruben Dias have started just one Premier League game together in ten months. Pep Guardiola felt compelled to sign two defenders in January but when one of them, Abdukodir Khusanov, made his debut against Chelsea, he made a goal-conceding error within minutes. But this quite jaw-dropping vulnerability is not merely down to personnel, it is down to a drop-off in physicality, in commitment, that few saw coming.

Arsenal were brilliant in this statement win - and in the likes of Lewis-Skelly and Ethan Nwaneri, scorer of a fantastic fifth - they have a youthful vibrancy that City so badly lack. But while City had the odd period when they had a lot of possession, they were desperately short of any sort of intensity. And to see a Guardiola team so painfully lacking in intensity is quite shocking. Having won it all, it might be a psychological thing. And this season’s Premier League now holds little interest for them, the Champions League and the FA Cup their only trophy hopes.

But in this state, they have no hope in either of those either. Join our new WhatsApp communityand receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. Sky has slashed the price of its Essential TV and Sky Sports bundle in an unbeatable new deal that saves £192 and includes 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more.