Premier League preview: Arsenal aiming to upset the odds at Manchester City
|Manchester City welcome Arsenal to the Etihad Stadium on Sunday for an early season clash between two of the Premier League’s big-hitters.
The reigning champions head into the game with a perfect record this term and they will be eager to open up a five-point gap over their title rivals.
While games involving top teams can be risky wagering propositions, many punters will be willing to make City the cornerstone of a Round Robin Bet this weekend.
Odds of 5/6 could tempt value-seeking punters given how impressively Pep Guardiola’s team has performed during the early part of the season.
Victories over Chelsea, Ipswich Town, West Ham United and Brentford have fired City to the top of the table and it would be no surprise if they remained there for the rest of the campaign.
Erling Braut Haaland continued his stunning start to the season against the Bees, netting a brace to take his tally to a mind-blowing nine goals.
Guardiola praised Brentford for the manner of their performance, but his team could have won more comfortably if they had taken some of the chances they created in the second half.
Several pundits have suggested City look vulnerable defensively, but a record of three goals conceded in four games is not poor by any stretch of the imagination.
They will head into their latest meeting with Arsenal with a point to prove having failed to get on the scoresheet in their two league matches last season.
The Gunners took four points off City, but their efforts counted for little as they once again had to settle for second place in the Premier League.
However, delving a little deeper into the recent record books paints a worrying picture for Arsenal, with City winning the previous 12 league matches between them prior to last season.
Arsenal have not triumphed at the Etihad since recording a 2-0 victory in December 2015 and it would be a brave move to back them to win this weekend.
They produced a gritty performance to win 1-0 at Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday, although the home side’s wastefulness in attacking areas undoubtedly helped their cause.
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta praised his team’s character after the game, and it would be churlish not to recognise that ‘winning ugly’ is a positive trait to possess.
Despite this, with several Arsenal players still likely to be unavailable due to injury this weekend, they face a monumental task to take something from the game.
Midfielder Declan Rice looks nailed on to be restored to the starting XI after Jorginho failed to impress against Tottenham, while Rodri could start for Man City.
Whoever wins that particular battle will hold the key to success this weekend and Arsenal will hope Rice is able to stamp his authority on the game.
With Haaland seemingly on a mission to set a new benchmark for Premier League goals this term, Arsenal’s defence will also need to be at their best.
A Man City victory would be a massive statement of intent in the title race, particularly given they usually improve as the season progresses.
Although opening up a five-point gap over Arsenal would not guarantee success, you’d be hard-pushed to imagine Guardiola’s side would spurn their advantage.
While there will still be 33 games to play after Sunday, the Gunners desperately need to demonstrate they can compete with City even when they have key players missing.
With that in mind, Arsenal will probably view a draw as a good result, which makes odds of 11/4 for the game to finish all-square look pretty tempting.