Arsenal vs Man City: All is not lost with stronger second string

Like every other side facing Manchester City this season, Arsenal are up against the odds to come out on top in their Premier League meeting on Sunday. Even the Bayern Munich’s of this world will fear the force of the Pep Guardiola steam train.

Having left Rome with a 1-1 draw in their Europa League round of 32 first leg clash with Benfica, while Mikel Arteta’s decision to field consecutive lineups for the first time since September 2018 may not have produced the desire result, his selections were warranted.

Fielding five midfielders on the night, a hint of Ivorian unpredictability or Brazilian flair from the off could, perhaps, have upped the tempo of an oftentimes languid display. Hindsight is a wonderful thing. Nonetheless, the right call.

The end result from that decision, apart from the scoreline, is that a much-changed team is expected to face this sky blue juggernaut. If the proverbial basket was in Rome or London, Italy got the nod.

Arsenal face an unenviable, but not impossible task when they face Manchester City in the Premier League on Sunday

Emile Smith Rowe, Bukayo Saka and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang need a rest. Granit Xhaka does too, but the thought of a Mohamed Elneny and Dani Ceballos pivot is an acceptance of an already gloomy fate.

A new front three will be tasked with facing Goliath, and they shouldn’t be discounted. Nicolas Pepe is…Nicolas Pepe. Wildly frustrating one week and devastatingly aggressive the next, the flip of the coin has become a supporters’ pre-game ritual for what’s in store.

Alexandre Lacazette enjoys these occasions. Provide him with a taste of the rough and tumble bullying central defenders will seek to impose and he’ll bite back accordingly. Gabriel Maritinelli, well, he just loves pulling the shirt on and living each moment as if it’s his last.

Whatever changes occur in central defence don’t illicit Shkodran Mustafi-shaped terrors of the past. Pablo Mari and Rob Holding are a commendable duo.

It has to be all-action; it has to be disciplined; it has to be a meticulously thought-out gameplan and execution. And that’s only half of it: Manchester City will have to falter. Not drastically, only in the context of their usually destructive standard.

Then, Arsenal will be in a position to knock the champions-elect off their perch.

Arteta is yet to see his side score a goal against his former mentor in the Premier League since assuming the Arsenal post. Even his preferred starters couldn’t cut it. What he has now is a ‘second string’ that, if all falls in line, can not only break the duck, but win the ruck.