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Arsenal take on Manchester City in what is the biggest clash of the upcoming weekend in the Premier League. Of course, we do have the Madrid Derby taking place in Spain but this clash would be just as important in establishing the early patterns of the season. The most recent match between the two teams ended in a resounding 3-0 victory for Arsenal as they won the Community Shield after ten years.
Judging by their 1-0 defeat against Stoke City, Manchester City will definitely go in with the intent to win the game and get their title defence back on track. Arsenal’s schedule so far has been much more hectic than City’s with the two extra Champions league qualification matches, which they scraped through after some difficulty. However, the international matches and the transfer deadline day changes have ensured that the players might not be at their best.
Arsenal’s major move during the deadline day was the arrival of Danny Welbeck, which shall definitely boost their options up front while Manchester City only saw the departure of Alvaro Negredo on loan. As we look forward to this exciting match, let’s take a look at the best possible XI from both these teams combined.
Goalkeeper: Wojciech Szczesny
Despite the arrival of David Ospina, Szczesny has retained his spot in the starting XI. He gets this position over Hart, who was suspect in Stoke’s solitary goal which led to City’s first loss of the campaign.
Szczesny has been a solid presence for Arsenal the past few months and outscores Hart in every department. Although he was very good once, Hart was a little error prone last season, and had lost his stability for some time. He has often made unnecessary mistakes and caused a lot of problems for the defence.
Szczesny’s shot-stopping abilities have improved over time and and the Golden Glove.award he won last season is testament to his abilities in front of goal. Hart has been dodgy for the past few months and is quietly starting to regain his form but Szczesny’s consistency gives him the edge over Hart.
Defence: Mathieu Debuchy – Vincent Kompany – Laurent Koscielny – Gael Clichy
The back line features two players from either team. Mathieu Debuchy gets the nod ahead of Bacary Sagna and the injured Pablo Zabaleta. Debuchy has had a solid season so far and has been a highly economical signing for Arsenal. His attacking abilities complement Alexis Sanchez very well and his defensive contributions are very good indeed. He has had the second highest success rate in aerial duels so far in the league, winning 18 of them.
The centre of defence comprises of Vincent Kompany and Laurent Koscielny. Quite straightforward choices as both of them are the best defenders in either team. Koscielny’s tough tackling and Kompany’s no-nonsense defending would go well together. Kompany has been a regular fixture in City’s line up for the past four years and the lack of a solid partner has been his only worry over the past season. While he is brilliant on his own, Martin Demichelis does not act up to the required standards and one could only hope that Mangala can cope up.
Koscielny has regularly partnered Per Mertesacker, with whom he seems to have gelled well. Although they have an occasional shipwreck at the back, like the 6 goal drubbing at Chelsea and the 6 goals conceded in the reverse fixture against City last season, Koscielny has been able to command the defence quite well.
Gael Clichy, who has found himself on the right side of the defence this season, completes the back four. Although Kolarov offers a much more effective presence up front, his lack of defensive prowess makes him suspect at the back. Nacho Monreal is a danger at the back and is caught off guard more often than not. Gibbs’ injury keeps him off the table and Clichy takes up this spot with ease. The former Arsenal man knows the requirements of his role and performs them quite well. He is a player who possesses the strengths necessary to deal with the menacing Alexis Sanchez.
Midfield: Alexis Sanchez – Yaya Toure – Fernando – Samir Nasri
The midfield features three players from City and only one from Arsenal. Samir Nasri has been having a good run of form and will be a sure starter for this match. Alongside him will be Brazilian midfielder Fernando, whose arrival at the Etihad has seen a new level of stability in the midfield. Playing alongside Yaya Toure in the defensive midfield area, his contributions have led to opposition attackers finding it tough to break through City’s midfield. He plays the role of a destroyer quite to perfection and shall be the most useful man for Pellegrini in stopping the quick link-up play of the Arsenal attackers.
Yaya Toure’s presence alongside Fernando is easily City’s most powerful weapon and they will be looking to exploit Arsenal’s weakness in dealing with pace through these two men. Toure’s lung-bursting runs from the middle and incredible goal-scoring ability will come in handy for Pellegrini, who would be quite happy that Aaron Ramsey is a major doubt for this fixture.
Alexis Sanchez, the high-profile summer signing by Wenger features on the right side of this midfield. His dynamic presence will be Wenger’s trump card to unsettling City’s defence and creating direct chances for his team to attack the goal. Sanchez’s play relies on his directness and dribbling ability that allows him to get past defenders with ease and get on the end of delicious balls played through. As evidenced during his stay at Barcelona, his tendency to drift in and create goal chances for himself only adds to his armoury.
Attack: David Silva – Stevan Jovetic
This combination has prospered so far for City and Pellegrini will hope that it does once more against Arsenal. The in-form striker seemingly has picked up a knock during his international fixture but is expected to return for the match and is likely to partner David Silva in attack. Although Silva will not be playing alongside Stevan Jovetic, their movements would be interconnected and the effectiveness of the duo was well-established against Liverpool, when Jovetic scored two goals.
Silva’s nimble feet and creativity offer a huge provision for Jovetic to make use of. There are few players in the world who can work a ball as well as Silva and Jovetic will benefit from this partnership. Despite having an inactive period last season, Jovetic has come good this year and started every game so far. He has managed to upstage Negredo and looks set on his way to becoming the No.1 striker at the Etihad with Sergio Aguero still not 100% fit. Danny Welbeck’s arrival at the Emirates might just be the key to unlocking his potential, but seeing as we haven’t seen anything of him so far, he misses out on this list.
Substitutes: Hart, Mertesacker, Mangala, Arteta, Ramsey, Ozil, Aguero
