Mikel Arteta’s side need to improve their record after Champions League games, starting against his former mentor
Mikel Arteta seems to relish being a problem solver. Conceding lots of goals from set pieces? Hire a specialist coach who will transform your team into one of the most efficient in the Premier League. Finding it hard to get one over on your former boss after a run of eight straight defeats? Devise a gameplan that restricts their most important players and lead Arsenal to five games unbeaten against Manchester City if you include the Community Shield win in 2023, equalling the longest streak of any manager against Pep Guardiola, alongside Jürgen Klopp and Thomas Tuchel.
“To beat them we had to lose against them,” Arteta said after the scrappy 1-0 victory at the Emirates in October 2023 that was Arsenal’s first over City in the Premier League since December 2015. “The team showed a real maturity that comes from experiences. Sometimes you need that to become a better team.”
Last season’s 5-1 victory at the Emirates would have felt particularly satisfying, even if ultimately it didn’t deliver what Arteta craves because Liverpool condemned Arsenal to a third successive runners-up spot. With Guardiola in town again on Sunday and desperate for revenge, Arteta knows another three points will be important to keep up the pressure on Arne Slot’s side after a defeat at Anfield before the international break.
