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Ian Darke, ESPN.com writer
Manchester City head to Arsenal on Sunday to go top of the Premier League table with confidence restored and normal winning service resumed.
I was there in Germany to watch Pep Guardiola’s team take control of the ball and the game in their 3-1 win. RB Leipzig on Wednesday in the Champions League, inspired by a moment of genius from Julian Alvarez as he scored a stunning goal to effectively win the game after a period of stubborn resistance from the Bundesliga side. The result ended any fears that City might be showing signs of weakness after back-to-back losses to Newcastle and Wolves.
The reigning Premier League champions have not lost three games in a row in a season since 2018 and never looked like they would do so at Leipzig, where their share of possession was a staggering 88% at one stage.
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The return of midfielder Rodri, who was available to play in Europe despite his current domestic suspension, made a big difference. Manchester City lose just seven percent of matches when Rodri plays, rising to 33% when he is absent.
You can easily make the case that he is one of the most important players in the team, and the good news for Arsenal is that Rodri cannot play on Sunday. It is the final match of his three-match suspension, so the key to this big match may be how effective City are in covering Rodri’s absence in this ‘No. 6’ role.
Guardiola clearly doesn’t trust Kalvin Phillips and Mateo Kovacic; For all he did, Kovacic failed when handed the job in the horrific defeat to Wolves. John Stones, who has been out since the Community Shield in August, is fit again and makes the bench for Germany. He has the intelligence and passing range to play in that starting role if required, but will he be ready or sharp enough to start against Arsenal having seen little action so far this season? It’s a difficult dilemma for Guardiola, who will have to improvise in a key area of the pitch.
One of the men who made his case at Leipzig was certainly 18-year-old Rico Luis, who brought a bundle of ideas and energy alongside Rodri. Asked to rate the Manchester-born youngster’s performance, Guardiola smiled broadly and said: “Awesome!”
Further cheering for City is the return of Bernardo Silva from injury, meaning Kevin De Bruyne is the only significant name still in the treatment room. However, in contrast, Jack Grealish has looked poor in the Champions League after returning from a bad leg injury, and could lose his place in the match against Arsenal to Jeremy Doku, who scored City’s third goal in Germany.
Meanwhile, Erling Haaland, usually a goal-scoring machine, is going through a rare drought. Five games without a goal is his longest Champions League drought, and he barely got a kick against Wolves’ warhorse Craig Dawson last weekend. However, a hungry Haaland never rests for long and still has eight goals in 11 games this season.
It is certain that Arsenal, for whom the title is the Holy Grail, and which it has not won since the 2003-2004 season, will present a much more difficult test than Leipzig, which has no ambition. Still acerbic from the way City triumphed last season, Arsenal will be fascinating in Mikel Arteta’s latest mind game against his old coach and mentor at City, Guardiola.
You suspect that Arsenal’s Champions League loss to Lens, in which Bukayo Saka suffered an injury, may have been caused by minds already focused on the big showdown against City. It’s not in Arsenal’s DNA to sit at home and play on the counter-attack, but Wolves have shown that denying City’s playmakers half-space can be the most effective game plan.
However, a more aggressive and adventurous approach by Arsenal could easily backfire. Consider this: Fulham and Tottenham both went to the Emirates and exploited their defensive deficiencies in a 2-2 draw.
The gap between the two sides narrowed to just one point last weekend, with City top of the standings on 18 points, but their midweek win in Saxony sent an ominous warning that City have returned to their winning ways. This, more than anything else, should worry Arsenal.
