Arsenal and Manchester City square battle at the Emirates Stadium in the penultimate Premier League matchup before the end of the month’s international break.
With just one point separating the top-ranked teams from last season, Sunday’s tantalizing match in north London has all the makings of a top-table six-pointer.
Despite dominating the Premier League for much of 2022–2023, the Gunners ultimately fell short of challenging the defending champions in the latter stages.
As Arsenal defeated Man City on penalties in August’s Community Shield championship match after Leandro Trossard’s late equalizer saved a 1-1 draw, manager Mikel Arteta got even with his coach Pep Guardiola.
As Arsenal defeated Man City on penalties in August’s Community Shield championship match after Leandro Trossard’s late equalizer saved a 1-1 draw, manager Mikel Arteta got even with his coach Pep Guardiola.
But when the two Spaniards face off in the Premier League, things frequently don’t go well for the Arsenal manager.
Arteta has been defeated by Guardiola in all seven managerial matchups in the top division, including a pair of victories by multiple goals last season.
These victories are a part of a bigger pattern, with Man City being held accountable for handing Arsenal the longest-ever winless Premier League stretch against a single opponent.
Man City should have the psychological advantage in this matchup after remaining undefeated in their previous 12 league encounters. The feel-good factor was also strengthened with Wednesday’s 3-1 Champions League victory against RB Leipzig.
In contrast, Arteta’s confidence may be low following the injury to his star winger Bukayo Saka on Tuesday during a lackluster 2-1 loss at Lens.
Since Saka has scored all of Arsenal’s goals in their last two home league games against the Cityzens, Arteta will be hoping for a different hero to emerge on Sunday.
Arsenal potential starting line-up:
(4-3-3): David Raya; Ben White, Gabriel Magalhaes, William Saliba, Oleksandr Zinchenko; Declan Rice, Martin Odegaard, Thomas Partey; Kai Havertz, Fabio Vieira, Gabriel Jesus.
Manchester City potential starting line-up:
(4-2-3-1): Ederson; Josko Gvardiol, Manuel Akanji, Ruben Dias, Kyle Walker; John Stones, Mateo Kovacic; Phil Foden, Julian Alvarez, Jeremy Doku; Erling Haaland.
Predicted Scoreline: 2-1
Every tradition must come to an end eventually, and this might be Arteta’s chance to score the opening goal against Guardiola.
Rodri and De Bruyne are two crucial midfield players, so beating Arsenal in their own backyard without them would unquestionably validate our 2023–24 Man City preview.
We’ll continue to stick with a split of the rewards, though.
