Manchester City vs Arsenal Prediction, Preview, Lineups and Team News | Premier League, September 22, 2024

Manchester City vs Arsenal Preview

• Tournament: Premier League
• Date: Sunday, Sep 22
• Kick-off Time: 03:30 pm GMT
• Venue: Etihad Stadium, Manchester, England

Champions Manchester City will host title challengers Arsenal at the Etihad Stadium this coming Sunday in what is expected to be a blockbuster clash as both teams look to set the pace early on in the 2024/25 Premier League season.

Manchester City have already begun the season in ominous fashion, winning four out of the first four games they’ve played. The Gunners aren’t far behind, having won three out of their initial four games of the season.

Both teams are unbeaten in the season until now and would like to maintain that record at the end of this game. Such a big fixture in the early days of a new season could also mean that both teams will try to be conservative and concentrate on not losing rather than winning, as they could then plan the rest of the first half of the season in their chase for the title.

Manchester City Team News

The biggest concerning team news from Manchester City’s point of view is that Kevin De Bruyne is expected to miss the clash against Arsenal. The Cityzens are expected to be ultra cautious with regards to the Belgian’s groin injury in midweek.

With Phil Foden returning, De Bruyne will at least feature on the bench, if not at all. Nathan Ake (thigh) and Oscar Bobb (leg) are both long-term absentees from City’s team and it looks like the Belgian maestro will be joining them for some time.

Arsenal Team News

The Gunners have problems of their own. Mikel Arteta has confirmed Martin Odegaard will be out for quite some time with an ankle injury. The Norwegian joins Mikel Merino, Oleksandr Zinchenko (calf), Takehiro Tomiyasu (knee) and Kieran Tierney (hamstring) in the Arsenal medical room.

New signing Riccardo Calafiori and chief creator Bukayo Saka will feature. Declan Rice will return after his ban, straight into the starting lineup and into Arsenal’s midfield. Both Jesus and Martinelli misfired in midweek, so we could see Mikel Arteta handing Raheem Sterling his first start in Arsenal colours this season. Leandro Trossard is in great form and is expected to start too.

Manchester City vs Arsenal Predicted Lineups

Manchester City possible starting lineup (4-5-1):

Goalkeeper – Ederson

Defenders – Walker, Dias, Akanji, Gvardiol

Midfielders – Savinho, Kovacic, Rodri, Silva, Foden

Forwards – Haaland

Arsenal possible starting lineup (4-3-3):

Goalkeeper – Raya

Defenders – White, Saliba, Gabriel, Timber

Midfielders – Havertz, Partey, Rice

Forward – Saka, Jesus, Trossard

Manchester City vs Arsenal Head-to-Head record

Both teams have faced each other a total of 61 times in history, with Manchester City claiming 25 wins and Arsenal winning 26. Meanwhile, 10 games have ended in a draw.

Last 5 H2H results

Key Players to Watch in Manchester City vs Arsenal

Erling Haaland (Manchester City)

Who else other than the Norwegian giant?

Erling Haaland has been on fire in the 2024-25 season. His statistics defy belief.

The incredible forward has scored nine goals in just four Premier League games he has featured for Manchester City in the 2024-25 season. Averaging more than two goals per game, we wouldn’t bet against him to score against Arsenal.

His positioning and strength is sure to give Arsenal problems as in the past. Watch out for him!

Bukayo Saka (Arsenal)

The one player Manchester City should definitely be worried about is Bukayo Saka.

The English winger has contributed with a goal or an assist in each game he has played until now in the 2024-25 season. Saka has scored one goal and provided four assists in the opening four Premier League games of the campaign.

Akanji and Gvardiol are definitely going to have a tough time dealing with Saka on Sunday. We may see Saka being full of attacking intent in this game, especially since Declan Rice returns in this game after a suspension.

Manchester City vs Arsenal Prediction

Both teams are missing key players and it is expected that they won’t be going out all guns blazing when it comes to their approach in this game. We could see a balance of both attacking and conservative football from either team.

City and Arsenal, both hold the ball very well and a result in this match may just come down to the finer details of maintaining concentration throughout the 90 minutes of the game. Erling Haaland is in incredible form, but we think Arsenal might be able to keep him quiet on the day.

Prediction: Manchester City 0-0 Arsenal (Watch Live)

Where to Watch Manchester City vs Arsenal Live?