3 key battles that could decide Arsenal’s crucial clash with Man City

After three draws on the bounce, Arsenal head to Man City knowing a failure to pick up points will most likely signal an end to their Premier League dream.

William Saliba’s injury has coincided with Arsenal’s collapse, but it isn’t the only reason results and performances have suffered. Individual errors have had a huge impact, with highly reliable performers such as Thomas Partey, Gabriel and Aaron Ramsdale all having a part to play in the club throwing away points.

That needs to change against City, who are back to their absolute clinical best.

3 key battles that could decide Arsenal’s crucial clash with Man City

1. The wide areas: the battle at both ends

Jack Grealish and Riyad Mahrez are a huge reason why Man City have shifted into gear in recent months. The pair have been direct and decisive in the final third, and their chemistry with Kevin De Bruyne and Erling Haaland has reached telepathic levels after a somewhat disjointed start as they got used to the Norwegian’s style of play.

Similarly, Arsenal’s front four are their biggest threat, and Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli will be key. The pair have scored or assisted in all of their games against the ‘big six’ this season, and Martinelli is Arsenal’s most in-form player in terms of goals and assists.

With that in mind, both sets of wingers are going to have to work hard at both ends of the pitch. They’re both going to have to protect their full-backs and with John Stones and Oleksandr Zinchenko inverting at either end of the pitch, the game could be decided by the set of wingers who are most switched on.

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