Man City vs Arsenal Premier League preview, team news and prediction

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The Premier League title won’t be decided at the Etihad on Sunday afternoon, but Manchester City v Arsenal should make the picture at the top a lot clearer. By the end of April 19, Arsenal could be nine points clear of City, or Pep Guardiola’s side could have seized control of the race.

While talk of an Arsenal quadruple has bubbled away, City’s familiar spring surge has them eyeing an unexpected domestic treble and closing in on Mikel Arteta’s tiring leaders. Already with the EFL Cup in the cabinet and 180 minutes from an FA Cup return, City have taken advantage of Arsenal slip-ups to move within six points, with a game in hand still in their back pocket.

Their display at Chelsea was flat before the break, but Nico O’Reilly ignited the second-half push with his sixth goal in all competitions since February — more than any other City player in that span - as the champions ran out 3-0 winners. That result made it three straight clean-sheet wins in all competitions for City, scoring nine in the process, and their April numbers are formidable too: it is their best month for both win rate (79.5%) and points per game (2.51) in the Premier League.

Arsenal’s April record under Arteta tells the opposite story because since the Spaniard took charge, the Gunners have won just 42.3% of their league matches in the month, averaging 1.54 points per game - their worst return across the calendar. The pattern resurfaced against Bournemouth last weekend as Eli Junior Kroupi and Alex Scott struck either side of a Viktor Gyokeres penalty in a 2-1 defeat that drew a smattering of boos at full time.

Reaching a second Champions League semi-final in two seasons - a club first - offered some midweek consolation, but a dreary 0-0 with Sporting Lisbon in the quarter-final second leg did little to lift the mood. One win in five across all competitions underlines Arsenal’s fatigue, as does a spike in mistakes: they’ve made 15 errors leading to a shot in Premier League games since January 1, compared with eight between August and December.

Still, Arsenal can take heart from recent head-to-heads, going five league games unbeaten against City after once losing 12 in a row. And with City needing to win and Arsenal simply needing to avoid defeat, the visitors would gladly take another stalemate if it gets them through Sunday.

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Nico O’Reilly was forced off early at Stamford Bridge with a hamstring worry, but Pep Guardiola says the utility man is “fine” for Sunday’s summit meeting.

City cannot say the same for fellow defenders Ruben Dias (hamstring), Josko Gvardiol (leg) and John Stones (calf), though Guardiola is expected to have the same group available as in the win over Chelsea. Barring a cautious call on O’Reilly — which could open the door for Rayan Ait-Nouri — an unchanged XI looks likely, with Rayan Cherki set to run the game again after registering a Premier League assist every 138 minutes this season.

At Arsenal, Mikel Arteta did offer a rare straight answer on the injury front, but it was one supporters will not enjoy: Bukayo Saka will miss the trip to the Etihad. Noni Madueke is only a slight doubt after a knee issue picked up in midweek, so a surprise start for 16-year-old Max Dowman remains unlikely.

Jurrien Timber, Martin Odegaard and Riccardo Calafiori are also being monitored, while Mikel Merino (foot) is still several weeks from a return.

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