The pick of this weekend’s Premier League action is without a doubt Manchester City’s home tie with Arsenal. Both teams have something to prove, City may have a 100% start but they’re yet to come up against a side who will also be competing for honours and the match against Arsenal represents a great chance for them to establish their own top-four credentials. After a disappointing campaign by their own standards last season Arsene Wenger’s Arsenal need to re-establish their own place in England’s ‘top four’. Aston Villa gave the Gunners a scare last season but they managed to finish fourth in the league, for a team used to winning silverware this is just not up to their standards. Arsenal hammered Everton 6–1 on opening day but a loss to Manchester United has taken the gloss of their fine start and they need to get back to winning ways. For both teams this game is a chance to prove themselves and with some of the Premier League’s most exciting talent on display it should prove to be a great spectacle.
A lot of the talk surrounding City over the summer was based around the fact that if they were to break into the top-four this season, whose place would they take? The Premier League betting odds had Arsenal down as the most likely candidates to lose out to City and now the two teams meet on Saturday we should be able to get an indication of which team is the more likely to qualify for next season’s Champions League.
To dd some extra spice to an already fiery encounter Manchester City bought not one but two of Arsenal’s most experienced players over the summer. Defender Kolo Toure made a £16million switch to Eastlands after seven years with Arsenal and City boss Mark Hughes will almost certainly start with Toure in the heart of his defence. Last season City’s key problems were undoubtedly in their defence but this season, after three games, they are yet to concede a goal and I’m sure Toure’s presence in that defence is no coincidence to the improved performances. Another man who made the move from the Emirates to Eastlands is striker Emmanuel Adebayor who Hughes splashed out £25million on. Adebayor has something to prove personally after a dissapointing season last time out and scoring against his former employers would be a massive boost for the African frontman.
The stage is set for a great encounter. Both teams are under immense pressure to do well this season and many pundits around the game believe the fight for fourth spot will be between Arsenal and City. After spending such a vast amount of money over the summer Hughes needs to get results and have his side competing at the top. For Arsenal they need to re-establish themselves amongst the Premier League’s elite as a side capable of lifting the title at the end of the campaign and victory over City would go a long way to proving that.
If you’re thinking of betting on the fixture it may be worth checking out the team news for each side. Arsenal are without Samir Nasri, Carlos Vela and Johan Djourou for this one but Cesc Fabregas and Theo Walcott are expected to be back in time to face City. Whisper it quietly, but Tomas Rosicky may even be fit to take a place on the bench against the league’s big spenders. I’m not holding my breath to be honest, he has suffered set backs before but it would be great to see the Czech wizard back in action.
City are missing Benjani and Michael Johnson through long term injuries with Roque Santa Cruz also set to miss the match. However, Vincent Kompany may feature against the Gunners as City look to establish themselves as real title contenders.
This fixture is possibly the biggest fxture so far of the Premier League season and well worth tuning in for. For the City and Arsenal fans out there I imagine a few are getting a bit nervous about this one, for the neutral like me it should be an excellent spectacle.
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