Like everyone else, I can’t wait for Sunday’s huge game between Manchester City and Arsenal.
From a manager’s point of view, both sides have many strengths and very few weaknesses — and so do the two men in charge. Mikel Arteta may not yet have Pep Guardiola’s years of experience or trophy haul, but he must reinforce to his players that they’re where they are because, until recently, they have been the best team in the league. He’ll be positive in training and in the dressing room this week, giving individuals encouragement and reminding the squad of what they have done to get to this point.
Pep, meanwhile, looks revitalised. At the end of last season and early this one he sometimes looked tired and less his usual self — which happens to managers — but since the January signings his team have rediscovered the X-factor that made them so dominant. He won’t need to motivate his players for this game: plenty in the media wrote City off, and they’ll be eager to repay that criticism. Wearing the crown can be a burden, and right now that feels more true of Arsenal, but City would love to take over as front-runners.
‘City are frightening teams again’
Pep won’t alter his possession-based philosophy, but what’s returned recently is the threat from wide, quick, skillful players — what I call “leg-beaters.” These are the players who work opposing defenders constantly by running at or past them for 90 minutes, creating one-on-one situations that can change games.
In the past, Riyad Mahrez provided that outlet, and now City have excellent options in those wide positions. With Antoine Semenyo and Jeremy Doku, plus Rayan Cherki’s ability to take players out of matches, City are frightening again. All three are genuine threats if they get one-on-one chances, and whoever plays full-back for Arsenal will have to be at their best.
Semenyo is a game-changer because he offers power, pace, dribbling and a genuine goal threat. Whether it’s him or Cherki on the right and Doku on the left, each can win the game for City. For that reason, City should look to get the ball to them quickly; fast deliveries to those front players will create the one-on-one situations they need. If City are slow to release the ball, Arsenal will drop deep and make it much harder to exploit the spaces those players require.
How do both teams prepare for such a big game?
Arsenal hold a six-point lead and a slight advantage in goal difference going into Sunday. If you offered this position to Arteta and Arsenal fans at the start of the season with six games remaining, they’d have taken it. The problem for the Gunners is their current poor run of form, though the double of Premier League and Champions League remains a possibility. They have played one more game than City this season and are dealing with injuries to key players like Bukayo Saka and Declan Rice. They strengthened squad depth in the summer but didn’t add in January.
City, by contrast, had their title hopes written off months ago but have improved steadily after their January recruitment, culminating in beating Arsenal to win the Carabao Cup last month. If their momentum continues, they could still push for the league and the FA Cup — potentially a treble.
Historically, April has been Pep’s strongest month and Arteta’s weakest since he took charge in 2019-20. So if Arsenal win on Sunday, I think the title will be theirs. If City win, momentum swings fully back in their favour and they’ll be favourites. A draw suits Arsenal more, but it wouldn’t end the race.
City have the home advantage and a week’s rest after their Champions League exit to Real Madrid; Arsenal had less recovery time after facing Sporting in midweek, though progressing will have been a confidence boost. Both managers know each other and their squads well, and both will be focused this week on tactical details — what they want their teams to do and how to stop the opposition.
Arsenal have the quality to play under pressure
If either side chooses to build from the goalkeeper, I’d press high to disrupt rhythm and passing patterns. It’s risky because both teams have defenders who are comfortable under pressure, but high risk can bring high reward: more goals are now conceded from turnovers in a side’s own half than ever before. City will dominate possession even if pressed and will spend a lot of time in Arsenal’s final third. So when Arsenal are pressed back, how do they counter with enough quality to hurt City?
When City are in possession they push everyone forward and often leave only two centre-backs at the back. Rodri will screen in front of the centre-backs, but there are spaces either out wide or in the channels behind the two centre-halves — those are the zones Arsenal must target. To do that effectively, when Arsenal win the ball deep they must get passes and runners beyond City’s back line by playing up, back and through. It sounds simple, but City will try to regain possession quickly and both centre-halves are swift, so any foot race must be manufactured intelligently.
Arsenal are capable of this. They have shown they can play under pressure, and they’ll need that ability on Sunday. Set-pieces will also be vital for both teams: the quality of corners, free-kicks and throw-ins must be matched by the desire to win the first and second ball, whether attacking or defending.
Who do you think is best?
I’ve been asked to name teams I’ve admired over the years and compare them to today’s top sides. I can’t pick a single best team I’ve seen or faced, but some stand out: Don Revie’s Leeds of the 1960s-70s, Sir Matt Busby’s Manchester United, Ferguson’s United, Liverpool in the 1980s, Mourinho’s Chelsea and the Chelsea sides that followed, Arsenal in the early 1970s and the 2003-04 Invincibles, and of course Manchester City’s teams over the past decade.
I don’t feel the current Arsenal and City teams are quite at that “greatest ever” level yet, but from what we’ve seen they could soon be among them.
Who would you put forward as the best team you’ve seen for your club or anywhere else, and how do Arsenal and City compare?
Tony Pulis was speaking to BBC Sport’s Chris Bevan.
