There is a huge match in the Premier League on Wednesday evening when the top two in the table meet at the Emirates Stadium when Arsenal host Manchester City in a clash which could tell us plenty about the title race.
Arsenal saw their lead cut to three points over the weekend so the winner here will finish the night on top of the table, although the Gunners will still have a game in hand so it might be a bigger game for City than Arsenal.
Where to watch
This match was one from the two rounds of games which Amazon Prime Video had in their repertoire so they will show the game live and in full. The build-up to the biggest match of the season begins at 6.30pm with kick off in London at 7.30pm.
Arsenal
The Gunners head into the biggest game of their season without a win in their last two matches. I don’t know whether they have suddenly started to appreciate where they are in the table and come unstuck or whether they had an eye on this match and came up short but whichever it is or was we will know more about their title credentials at the end of this contest. A win here wouldn’t quite seal the title but it would very much be theirs to lose.
One thing which will give Arsenal plenty of comfort heading into this match is their home form. Only Newcastle and Brentford have left the Emirates with a point and the latter might not have done that if the VAR official was in any way competent. The issue Arsenal could find themselves having is being caught between sticking and twisting. A point probably isn’t a bad result for them but a win would make them huge favourites to win the league.
Man City
Such is the high expectations we have of Manchester City this season, it is fair to say that they have performed worse than in previous campaigns even though on paper at least they look to have strengthened when they acquired Erling Haaland. It has been a strange few weeks for City who have dropped points in three of their last seven matches, something which is unlike them. They did however look like they might be finding a groove in the win over Aston Villa at the weekend.
One concern over Manchester City this season has come defensively. They have only kept two clean sheets in their last 10 matches and they were against gun shy Chelsea and shit shy Wolverhampton Wanderers. Whether their defence can be relied upon in a match of this magnitude remains to be seen. We know that their attack can get the better of any side but in the big matches this season they have flattered to deceive at times which is another concern.
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Team News
Arsenal will continue to be without Gabriel Jesus while a lack of game time will ensure Emile Smith Rowe is only on the bench at best. Despite scoring his first Gunners goal at the weekend, Leandro Trossard is expected to be a substitute once again.
Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola has confirmed his team will definitely be without defender John Stones. They have a major doubt over Erling Haaland too. Julian Alvarez will replace the Norwegian should he not be fit to feature.
Betting
This isn’t the easiest match to bet on. Usually these matches between two top teams gets hyped up to the max and fails to deliver when it comes to quality on the pitch and given the situation Arsenal are in at present in this title race I wouldn’t be completely surprised if these two cancel each other out. At the same time, an early goal could throw this one into something pretty special. My gut feeling is for a tight, low scoring match but it is a brave man who backs that in a Man City game and I’m not that person. I’m slightly surprised that Arsenal are as big as they are for the match based on how the two sides have played this season but surely we’ll see a good version of Man City here.
If there is a way into the contest from a betting point of view then it could well be through Bukayo Saka. The weak link for Man City in this match is going to be at left-back whoever plays there and Saka is one of the best in the country right now so I would imagine Arsenal will look to get him involved at every opportunity. He is the penalty taker for Arsenal which might be significant here given that Arsenal have just been the victim of a shambles of a VAR call but he’s a threat in open play too. He is 11/10 to have a shot on target in this match and attacking the weakest part of the City defence that looks a more than fair price to me.
Tips
Back B.Saka – Over 0.5 shots on target for a 3/10 stake at 2.10 with William Hill
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