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Arsenal Vs Manchester City: Is Arsene Wenger an idiot?
Arsene Wenger has stated that Arsenal will play their own game against Manchester City. Such is the firepower of Pep Guardiola’s side, I have to ask: Is he an idiot?
Arsenal are preparing to face the best team in the Premier League. While they have been on a solid and improving run of form recently, with the only blot being a boneheaded loss to Watford since the 4-0 thrashing at Anfield in August, the terrorising destruction of Manchester City is something that they have yet to encounter.
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Pep Guardiola’s team are magnificent. Not only have they earned 28 points out of a possible 30, but they have done so with such style and flavour. Their attacking play is sweeping, their passing is precise and pacy, their movement is fluid and interconnected. They are, simply, a wonderful, wonderful football team. And Arsene Wenger must find a way to beat them. Somehow.
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When he faced Chelsea away from home earlier in the season, Wenger adopted an extremely defensive approach. Disciplined and determined, he watched his side repel a vibrant offence. But if his pre-match comments are anything to go by, it seems as though he may choosing another avenue:
"“We will, of course, try to play our game, we will not hide. When we go there, we want to defend well. But you cannot go there only focused on defending, we want as well to play with the ball and create dangerous situations. Sometimes the best way to defend is to attack. When you want to play football, you have to accept risk. If you want to play football when you walk on the pitch, you have to accept the gamble and the risk as part of the game. After that, you have to rate the risk, whether it is a bigger risk to defend or attack.”"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4EEvOF92bq0
That is somewhat worrying.
These are the statistics that Manchester City are currently leading the Premier League, along with the raw number in brackets: Goals (35); Shots (185); Shot conversion (19%); Touches in opposition box (386); Average possession (72%); Passing accuracy (89%); Shots faced (63); Shots on target faced (18).
In fact, if you considered the pace of many of the metrics, like goals, points etc., and extended them for a 38-game season, they would break the Premier League record for points, goals scored, home goals scored, away goals scored, and goal difference. And they would only fail to break Chelsea’s goals conceded record by eight goals.
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City are not just the best team in the Premier League this season. As of 10 games, they are the best in Premier League history. And Wenger wants to take them on, toe to toe. That doesn’t seem like the best plan to me.