Manchester City haven't quite clicked into gear this season after Aguerooooooooo's goal in May. Arsenal on the other hand have hit the inconsistency that their fans (including myself) are now used to. Ten years ago this fixture looked a lot different. It wouldn't have been a favourite for a Super Sunday game for a start, and in terms of league position, the roles would have almost certainly been reversed.
Arsenal started well defensively this season, but through all their battling looked noticeably week at the back. Arsenal fans have been calling for some stability there with Mertesacker making far too many mistakes and the lack of an anchorman in midfield after the departure of Alex Song, but with Abou Diaby back in the fold Wenger will no doubt use that as a reason not to sign a replacement. Despite their free scoring prowess in recent games against Reading and Newcastle, City have conceded the least amount of goals in the league of any team this season (19) yet haven't managed a goal at the Emirates in the previous 5 games.
Manchester City have had their problems too this season, with Robin Van Per- I mean Manchester United sitting comfortably at the top of the league, United's 'little brother' have been trying to nurse the hangover from last season's success. Roberto Mancini's unrelenting desire to prove that Mario Balotelli isn't a complete liability would have backfired a lot more than it has without Eden Dzeko's contributions. Being 7 points behind United, Mancini has to start going with proven results in Dzeko,Tevez and Aguero (when he returns from injury) rather than possible potential. Although after this...
...I don't think it will be too long before it's one less thing Mancini has to worry about. I'll be shocked if Mario isn't out the door by February.
So after all of their respective problems this season. Where do we stand?
Well Manchester City are without Aguero, Nasri, Yaya Toure and Kolo Toure .
Whilst Arsenal will have to play without Olivier Giroud, but other injuries seem to have cleared up, with Diaby expected to make his return. However, don't expect anything more than a substitute appearance from the big Frenchman.
This game is likely to produce more tense moments than spectacular ones, and with City's injuries and Arsenal's inconsistency, I would say a cautious approach from both teams would be expected. In saying that, football is a funny old game and as we have seen with Bradford City beating Villa, Arsenal and Wigan, and City's unbelievable comeback against QPR to win the league last season. We should know by now that anything can happen.
There is something in the air today, an air that suggests fireworks are on the horizon. I may be wrong, but this could well be a blockbuster. With both teams needing points for different reasons, this could well be an attacking, free-flowing game between two very big football clubs.
My Prediction: Arsenal 2-2 Manchester City
Thank you for reading,
-WritingOnTheOpenRoad
Twitter: @TheOpenRoad91
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E-Mail: writingontheopenroad@hotmail.com
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