Arsenal v Manchester City
Home 19/10 Draw 23/10 Away 13/10
The return of the Premier League sees Arsenal host Manchester City at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday in a mouth-watering clash as both sides look to get back to winning ways following hiccups in their previous fixtures. These sides met last month in the Community Shield with Arsenal demolishing a slightly understrength City team 3-0 at Wembley Stadium.
Alexis Sanchez scored his first Premier League goal but Arsenal were held to a 1-1 draw at Leicester City in the Premier League two weeks ago. Sanchez netted in the 20th minute to seemingly set Arsenal on their way, but Leonardo Ulloa headed in two minutes later to earn the hosts a share of the points. The draw leaves Arsenal with five points and only one win in three Premier League matches this season. Arsenal would have been hoping for an easier fixture after failing to claim maximum points against The Foxes and now come up against the defending champions, Manchester City. Aaron Ramsey’s skill and comfort on the ball often catches the eye and he will be The Gunners’ driving force from the midfield. Equally adept in close confines or open spaces, he terrorizes opponents with an array of flicks, back heels, and audacious dribbles. Sanchez looks to have found his feet in an Arsenal shirt having found the net twice in one week, scoring against Besiktas and Leicester. The Chilean’s high energy and constant work rate could see him be a menace for Manchester City in attack and defence. The man to watch and lead Arsenal’s attack will be new signing Danny Welbeck. There will be pressure on Welbeck to perform at the Emirates, as there should be at the top level. But, with Olivier Giroud sidelined for quite some time with an ankle injury, he will arrive as the No. 1 striking option. That will provide a certain amount of freedom and Welbeck could flourish as a result. Also, Welbeck has the profile to fit into Wenger’s Arsenal style of play. He is extremely quick, strong and has decent technique. Combine that with a fantastic work ethic, and Arsenal have signed a player of real quality with the potential to become even better.
Manchester City slumped to a surprise first defeat in their defence of the Premier League title, losing to visiting Stoke. Mame Biram Diouf scored the only goal of the match in the 58th minute when his long, powerful run culminated in a finish that Manchester City goalkeeper Joe Hart should have saved, and despite their prolonged spells of pressure, the hosts simply couldn’t grab an equaliser. Manuel Pellegrini now faces a tough fixture list as his side travel to North London to take on Arsenal, followed by a trip to Germany to take on Bayern Munich in the UEFA Champions League and then welcome Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea to the Etihad Stadium. One player in line to receive a hostile reception is former Arsenal defender, Bacary Sagna. The Frenchman left the Gunners for Manchester City this summer after seven years in North London. He could be in for a rough ride from the home faithful after recently proclaiming that he joined City to boost his career which has angered Arsenal fans. With Pablo Zabaleta limping off the field in Argentina’s friendly against Germany after a late challenge from none other than Lukas Podolski, Sagna should slot in. Despite parting ways with Alvaro Negredo who has joined Valencia, City still have one of the most impressive group of strikers in the Premier League. All are worthy of a starting place in most sides, and all bring different qualities to the City attack. Sergio Aguero in particular, is one of the best in Europe and certainly the best striker City have ever had on their books—with his pace and desire to go at defenders a near-guarantee of goals. He’s scored two already this season in two fleeting cameos, with his fitness still thought to be delicate. City fans would have been happy to see Aguero hit the net in Argentina’s 4-2 drubbing over Germany last week.
Prediction: Draw
Arsenal are priced at a valuable 19/10 while City are favourites at 13/10. Both sides are coming off disappointing results and will be looking to turn their form around. Neither side is yet to find their rhythm in the early stages of the Premier League. I can’t see Arsenal losing at home to a City side who have been below par. Having said that, I can’t see City losing two in a row either and the draw looks a likely result.
Written by Chadley Nagel
