Andy Cole has questioned whether Arsenal will deal with the inevitable 'rough patch' that comes with a title race and looked back on a key message Sir Alex Ferguson relayed to his Manchester United side.
A run of five straight league wins - including last Saturday's thrilling 2-1 Manchester derby comeback - had pulled United back into the mix for the Premier League top spot, and despite a mid-week hiccup that saw them drop two points at Crystal Palace, victory at the Emirates on Sunday would pull all three leading runners to within five points of each other.
Title talk has only recently emerged in M16, with Erik ten Hag's side one of several battling for a top-four spot up until last weekend. And with this unprecedented campaign only just reaching its halfway stage, many are cautious not to get carried away. One of those is Cole, who knows that both his former side and the Gunners will go through a tough spell - as City are doing currently - and highlights how they ride that period as key to the final standings come May.
