Oleksandr Zinchenko thanked fans at the Etihad Stadium after making his first return since leaving Manchester City.
The Ukraine international joined Arsenal over the summer in a deal worth up to £32m. His former City colleague Gabriel Jesus also moved to north London, and the pair have helped put Mikel Arteta's team in contention for a first league title in 18 years.
City and Arsenal have yet to meet in the league this season, but Pep Guardiola's side won the first clash between the sides in the FA Cup on Friday night. Zinchenko appeared to get into an altercation with his former teammates in Manchester but made his feelings clear after the game.
Zinchenko was seen having words with Ilkay Gundogan, with Jack Grealish attempting to calm the situation down. Zinchenko and Gundogan were two of Pep Guardiola's first City signings back in 2016, arriving at the club within six weeks of one another.
Not long later, though, any animosity appeared to be gone. The Arsenal left-back swapped shirts with another of his former colleagues, Kyle Walker, who had a smile on his face throughout.
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"Not the result what we came for but we will bounce back!" Zinchenko wrote on Instagram. "There are no old friends - there are friends with whom there are many good memories and you will always be glad to see each of them.
"There is no past home - there is a place where you were very happy, and now you are happy to return. Thank you, Etihad for the warm welcome! See you soon at Emirates, I hope you will have fun!"
Were City wrong to sell Zinchenko? Have your say in the comments section
Ilkay Gundogan and Oleksandr Zinchenko exchanged words (Twitter/ITV Football)After a goalless first half, Nathan Ake struck shortly after the hour mark to put City in front. The Dutchman's goal proved to be the decider, with the visitors unable to find a way back into the game.
Arsenal are now out of both domestic cups, allowing them to focus on the Europa League alongside their title charge. The Gunners are back in European action in March, with their first league game against City taking place on February 15 at the Emirates Stadium.
There was an injury concern for the league leaders, with Thomas Partey forced off early. Manager Mikel Arteta confirmed the midfielder, who appeared to suffer a rib injury before making way for Albert Sambi Lokonga, is due to go for a scan to discover the extent of the issue.
"Yeah, he had some discomfort and it was getting worse and worse," Arteta said. "He could not continue and he was not comfortable to continue. No initial diagnosis. Tomorrow, or the day after, it will have to be an MRI scan and we’ll see what he has."
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