Arsenal are preparing for what could be their biggest game of the Premier League season as they make the trip to the Etihad Stadium to face Manchester City. The Gunners currently hold a five point gap over their rivals, but with an extra two games played at this stage of the season.
The head-to-head means that things stay in both teams' hands, but the result of the clash could alter the course of the title race altogether. A win for City would see them close the gap to just two points with two games in hand to leapfrog into first, while a win for Arsenal could see them build an eight point gap and a healthy distance going into the final run-in.
"It plays a huge part," Mikel Arteta said when asked if confidence and psychology played a part going into the game. "Obviously the belief is there. When I look at how they trained, how they reacted after that, the mood in the dressing room, how they’ve been defending each other in every moment.
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"We really want it and we’re going to show that again tomorrow night. Then you have to deliver in the right moment, the right performance and it has to be perfection because that’s what this last level demands – absolute perfection in every single ball."
Heading into the game, a lot of the focus has been surrounding how Arsenal can stop the Manchester City offensive pressure, especially given the goal scoring exploits of Erling Haaland this season. However, Arteta may have a secret weapon of his own going into the clash.
Former Arsenal star Martin Keown believes that injury to City defender Nathan Ake could play a huge part in the game for the Gunners, saying in his Daily Mail column: "To understand how unpredictable Guardiola is as a tactician, you only need to look at the last time these teams met in a 3-1 Premier League win for City in February.
"Bernardo Silva started the game at left back but finished it as a right winger! That was a big ask for Silva as he was tasked with dealing with Arsenal's two most dangerous players in Bukayo Saka and Martin Odegaard in swapping between defence to midfield. Once Guardiola made a mid-match switch, moving Nathan Ake to left back, City improved.
"Ake slapped the handcuffs on Saka that day, as he did in City's FA Cup win a month earlier. It is a huge blow for City that Ake is injured but good news for Saka."
It could prove to be the difference in the game, should Saka have the license to wreak havoc in the attacking phases. However, it remains to be seen whether it will be enough for the Gunners in their huge clash at the Etihad.
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