Arsenal

Simon Stone
Chief football news reporter at the Etihad Stadium

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Mikel Arteta quite correctly said that he doesn't know what the score would have been at the Etihad Stadium had Leandro Trossard not been sent off in the first half.

Just because Arsenal were leading at the time, and survived all of the second half and eight minutes of injury-time without him, it doesn't mean they would have won it with him.

Yet that is what the gut reaction will feel like. There will be a sense of injustice at the manner of Trossard's early exit, justified or not, and that is quite normal too.

But the fact that Arsenal got so close to ending Manchester City's long unbeaten home record - and went so long without conceding against the champions despite being a man down - bodes well for the future.

Arsenal may not encounter this set of circumstances again, but they will have adversity to overcome this season. What happened this afternoon will stand them in good stead for the challenges that lie ahead.

Pride and frustration can be easy bedfellows on the return trip back to London.

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Fresh after scoring in his first Premier League start, Riccardo Calafiori has been speaking to BBC Match of the Day: "I am so happy to have scored and I am a bit disappointed that we didn't win.

"It was so tough. We reacted really good and the second half was extremely tough - more mentally than physically."

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Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has been speaking to BBC Match of the Day after the game: "I am so proud of the team. We played the game in a difficult context, playing against the best team in the world.

"After what happened when we went 2-1 up, it was a different story. I prefer not to make any comment about that [Leandro Trossard's red card].

"Obviously, it is already a miracle that we had played 56 minutes at the Etihad with 10 men [without conceding]. It is unbelievable what we have done.

"It is obvious what happened when they made that decision, but it doesn't deserve my comment. I don't want to ruin anything else off the pitch."

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Since Mikel Arteta's first game in charge of Arsenal in December 2019, the Gunners have seen 17 players red carded in the Premier League - at least four more than any other club. It was Leandro Trossard's first red card in 175 appearances in the competition.

Riccardo Calafiori was only the second player to score a goal from outside the box on his first Premier League start for Arsenal, after Fabio Vieira against Brentford in September 2022. Calafiori's goal was from Arsenal's first shot of the match.

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Sutton is making predictions for all 380 Premier League matches this season, against a variety of guests.

For week five, he takes on singer-songwriter and West Ham fan James Smith whose debut album, Common People, is out now.

Manchester City host Arsenal on Sunday at 16:30 BST.

Sutton's prediction: 2-1

Arsenal got a lot of praise for the way they shut out City here for a draw last season, but they then lost the title race by two points.

Of course that left them open to anyone who wanted to be 'Captain Hindsight' - like I did when I turned the result around and used it to question the Gunners.

Yes, that criticism was harsh but we are talking about the fine margins between finishing first and second.

Inter Milan showed on Wednesday that you can hurt City at the same time as keeping them quiet and they were very brave with the way they were playing out. They surprised me actually, because they beat City's press very easily.

I don't like to back against Arsenal because, defensively, they are so strong. They have also won all but one of their 11 away Premier League games in 2024 - the exception being that draw at the Etihad in March - and have kept nine clean sheets.

That is incredible and, if they wanted to, they could cause City problems on the counter-attack too, the same way Inter did.

I was at that game and thought City were well below their best. Erling Haaland was quiet and Kevin de Bruyne might not be fit to face the Gunners after getting injured before half-time.

Still, it is almost two years since City failed to score in two successive games - October 2022, when they drew 0-0 in Copenhagen in the Champions League and then lost at Anfield in the Premier League. I am expecting a reaction, and I don't think they will be as flat as they were on Wednesday.

James's prediction: 3-1

What a game this will be. It is going to be close, but you just can't stop Haaland at the moment. He will be the difference because I just don't think Arsenal have really got a goalscorer.

Read their full predictions and have your own say here

Former Arsenal midfielder Cesc Fabregas believes the current Arsenal team "always manage to control games", paying tribute to how well the side is set up.

Speaking on BBC's Planet Premier League podcast, Fabregas said: "They are a very well balanced team. Everyone knows their job.

"Teams have a lot of trouble penetrating them and being incisive between the lines because they always try to have a block of players. You know you cannot really go through them - this gives them a lot of time to get into the right positions.

"They are not invincible in the terms that yes, they do concede sometimes. But, they always manage to control games - this is very, very important in the Premier League."

Former Manchester City defender Nedum Onuoha joined Fabregas on the podcast and pondered if Gabriel and William Saliba were the best centre-back pairing in the league.

"If you make it really Premier League focused, they've been really consistent in the fact they have been available next to each other for the duration of the last two seasons," Onuoha said.

"Arsenal last year had the best defensive record both in terms of goals conceded and xG. They've also got that sort of old school in them - where they come up for set pieces and they're really massive. And they're not shy."

Listen to the full episode on BBC Sounds

Former Premier League midfielder Michael Brown does not believe Manchester City v Arsenal is a title decider this early into the season, but expects it to be "fascinating".

Speaking on BBC iPlayer's The Football News Show, he said: "When City played at the weekend and Arsenal had to go to their rivals Spurs to get a result, I think the pressure was higher.

"If Arsenal were coming into this game on the back of losing that one, the pressure would be greater because of the gap of points. It was a really impressive, dogged performance for Arsenal and I think the pressure is on City.

"They have started very well but this is a different game. This is an Arsenal side that will come and test them. We always expect something different. Fascinating game.

"It's a wonderful occasion - a real big game - and everybody is looking forward to it. I don't think it is title deciding right now, but it can give either team a big psychological lift."

When it comes to this fixture at the moment, you always have to say it is a bigger game for Arsenal than for Manchester City.

City have won the title for the past four years, but psychologically if Arsenal win this game, while I do not think it is going to determine if Arsenal win the league this time, it does give them that psychological edge of getting those points against their title rivals away from home.

If the Gunners were to win, then that means they would have already got wins away to Aston Villa, Tottenham and the title holders, which would be a big boost mentally. You look at last season and what happened against Villa late in the campaign, that was probably the game that cost them the title in the end.

Even if they were to get three points on Sunday, Arteta will not be naive to think this will be the defining game of the campaign. He knows the qualities of Manchester City and they are a team that you know you can never write off because they have done it so many times.

They have those experiences in the bag that Arsenal don't have right now. But you do feel the Gunners are closer to the title than they have ever been before and if you were to pick a season that they did it, it would be this one.

Fara Williams was speaking to BBC Sport's Nicola Pearson

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Arsenal earned four points against Manchester City in the Premier League last season, double the amount they had from their previous 15 league meetings with City (W0 D2 L13).

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Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta is urging his team to find more consistency as they prepare to travel to Manchester City on Sunday (kick-off 16:30 BST).

The Gunners have scored once in their past two matches - a 1-0 victory at Tottenham and a 0-0 draw at Atalanta - with that goal coming through centre-back Gabriel, via a corner.

"Yes, we want to improve in certain areas but in order to do that it’s important that we have to be much, much better," Arteta said.

"We never got distances or the right relationships [against Atalanta], or put the ball in areas where they really suffer. We need to be a lot more consistent if we want the team to flow.

"For sure, we will prepare to try and win. That’s been the message already. In order to do that there are going to be things that we have to do much better than against Atalanta.

"There are some things that we have done exceptionally well and we are going to have to do them again. Because we all know we need a big performance to beat them."

Despite the perceived lack of bite up top, Arteta is pleased with the resilience his side has shown at the start of the 2024-25 season, particularly his centre-back pair of Gabriel and William Saliba.

"They are in a great moment and have been very, very consistent for the past two seasons together," he added.

"There is an unbelievable chemistry there and you can sense it. They gave us a lot against Atalanta - I thought they were both exceptional.

"When you see the stats and the number of goals that [Erling Haaland] scores then you can tell that he is one of the main sources. We need to stop him from scoring."

Joe Bradshaw
BBC Sport Senior Journalist

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When Gabriel bullets in a header from a corner to beat fierce rivals Tottenham Hotspur, it is perhaps not surprising Arsenal’s set-piece coach Nicolas Jover hits the headlines.

In fact, since the start of last season, that was the 24th goal the Gunners have scored from such situations, comfortably the most in the Premier League.

However, less obvious is the creative ways Mikel Arteta’s side are finding ways to use set-pieces to their advantage.

For instance, according to Opta, Arsenal spend the longest time to get the ball back in play out of the whole division - an average of 31.8 seconds so far this season.

That is in contrast to title rivals Manchester City and Liverpool, who take 25.4 and 24.4 respectively.

A defensive effect of that is to slow the momentum of their opponents and allow Arteta's side to get back into shape.

From an attacking point of view, it exerts control and, judging by the jostling at the back post at corners, gives optimum time for unsettling the opposition backline.

It is not just corners, throw-ins and free-kicks either. Against Brighton, goalkeeper David Raya took eight minutes out of the game with his goal-kicks!

Expect every tool in Arteta's - and Jover's - kit to be employed as they seek to win at arguably the hardest place in the Premier League on Sunday.

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Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta sees Sunday's trip to Manchester City (kick-off 16:30 BST) as an opportunity for the Gunners to put down a marker to the rest of the league and certify their title credentials.

Speaking on Friday before the match against his former employers, Arteta outlined his expectations.

"We go to the home of the champions, the team that I think in Premier League history has been the most consistent ever, not only in terms of results but in terms of dominance and consistent top performances," he said.

"This is the challenge. We have to go there and prove that again we’ve made another step and we can compete."

Midfielder Kevin de Bruyne is a doubt for Sunday's fixture but, given the depth City possess, Arteta is not focusing on potential absentees.

"They have the option if he doesn't play of Gundogan, Bernardo, Phil Foden, Kovacic," he added.

"They're all world-class players.

"We have a few missing as well and we have to adapt, but certainly those kinds of teams don't rely on one individual which is extremely important for them."

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Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta says he does not know the timescale of Martin Odegaard's injury.

The midfielder has been out for the Gunners since the international break, missing the north London derby win over Tottenham last weekend and the 0-0 midweek Champions League draw with Atalanta.

"We need to see the development in the next week or so, how the ankle reacts first of all and then the staff will give me an update on the timeframe and how long he’ll be out for," said the Arsenal manager on Friday.

The Gunners travel to Manchester City on Sunday for a 16:30 BST kick-off in the Premier League - the third of three important away games they will have played across a six-day span.

Despite the busy week, Arteta has been happy with the way his side has performed so far.

"We played against two very different teams but both of them are really tricky to play against away from home," he added.

"We had a positive result last night [against Atalanta]. We wanted to win the game, but if you cannot win it, don’t lose it. There are things to improve but as a team we are showing a lot of consistency.

"Obviously, we knew the schedule and we knew that it’s extremely rare to play in these conditions with three massive away games in six days, but it was what it was so we have prepared for that physically, mentally and tactically.

"We want to be in the position we’re in. We dreamed of this years ago and we're in this position right now. Let’s make the most out of it and let’s enjoy it."

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On Thursday, Arsenal began their 2024-25 Champions League campaign with a tense 0-0 draw at Atalanta.

Watch highlights and analysis below...