Man City VS Arsenal Preview: Prove Your Worth
By Brian Wong
The headline of this Arsenal preview is “prove your worth” because this will be a game where Arsenal will have to prove themselves and prove to themselves and to the fans that they are capable of beating one of the best in the Premier League.
Arsenal has always played well against teams that aren’t in the upper half of the league table, but it’s quite the opposite fighting teams for spots in the top four.
But Arsenal has been playing a bit better, and players are coming back from injury. All of that means that if Arsenal were to make a push, that it should happen soon, and this would be a great game to kick off a string of impressive wins.
Prediction: Man City 1-3 Arsenal
1) Speed against Man City
Teams that beat Manchester City are usually well built defensively and can threaten City’s back four with speed. Arsenal might not have a great defense, but lately Arsenal has been playing some great team defense. Yet what makes me so confident about Arsenal’s possible win is the fact that Arsenal has such a fast-paced team.
Speed is important because it keeps the Man City attack honest, it helps ensure Manchester City doesn’t put too many people forward and it requires their defenders not to wander too far forward.
Jun 26, 2014; Recife, BRAZIL; Germany midfielder Mesut Ozul (8) against USA during the 2014 World Cup at Arena Pernambuco. Germany defeated USA 1-0. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
2) Better Defense
Arsenal played better defense last time out, but one game a good defense does not make. Yet Arsenal has been doing a lot of great things as a team and they are really embracing team defense. That is going to be crucial for Arsenal to win because Arsenal need some great defense to absorb the pressure Man City will bring this weekend.
3) Hatred
Let’s be honest, all of us here reading this want Arsenal to win but even more so when it is against Manchester City. City is the team that bought Arsenal players like we were a feeder club. City is the team that has used millions of dollars to lure good players to build their team. Man City stands for everything Arsenal doesn’t!
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