Much of the build up to Arsenal's Premier League clash with Manchester City was spent agonising over how Arsenal might look to set up. The Gunners were on a run of three draws in a row that had seen them cede control in the Premier League title race and it felt like something had to change.
Mikel Arteta has form for trying outlandish things at Etihad in the past. Two years ago the Spaniard opted to trial Willian as a false nine before opting for a back three that contained Sead Kolasinac and Calum Chambers during last year's 5-0 humbling. This time around the potential for a galaxy-brain moment befitting of his mentor Pep Guardiola felt like it could be forced by the presence of Rob Holding. Since coming in to the backline to replace the injured William Saliba, Holding has struggled, and the Arsenal team as a whole have missed the Frenchman's distribution from the back.
When asked about the potential for a switch of system by football.london in his pre-match press conference Arteta teased that "we will see." Ultimately he chose to stick with Holding, but after a chastening night for the 27-year-old, Arteta admitted that there were some things he wanted to do differently in this title deciding match.
