Can Arsenal Make A Statement Win?

Who will be top of the table after Arsenal face Manchester City at The Etihad?

Welcome back to The Overlap Newsletter! Arsenal came out on top of the first North London Derby of the season, as Gabriel’s second-half header sealed all three points. With Martin Odegaard, Mikel Merino and Declan Rice unavailable, it was the perfect opportunity for Tottenham to beat Arsenal for the first time since May 2022. However, it proved a huge win for The Gunners who head to Manchester City on Sunday only 2 points behind the current title holders - kick off at 4:30pm. Watch the latest episode of Stick To Football on The Overlap Youtube Channel as our very own Jamie Carragher takes to the hot seat. Listen to the latest episode of It Was What It Was following the link below, as Jonathan Wilson and Rob Draper take a deep dive Aston Villa’s most iconic moment: their 1982 European Cup triumph:

Quiz Question…

Bukayo Saka has assisted in each of Arsenal’s first four league matches and could become the second Premier League player to provide an assist in each of a team’s first five matches. Who was the first to do so in 2004/05?

Answer to follow at the end of the Newsletter…

Stick To Football Behind The Scenes: Jamie Carragher

Gary Neville’s Point Of View

Last season’s draw at the Etihad wasn’t enough for Arsenal so now they need a statement win…

If this superb Arsenal team doesn’t win the Premier League or the Champions League then they can forget about going down in history. That’s harsh but the reality of elite sport. No-one will fondly recall the magnificence of William Saliba and Gabriel at the back, the brilliance of Martin Ødegaard and Declan Rice, David Raya’s extraordinary saves or the incision of Bukayo Saka up front. There will be no Netflix documentaries. They will never be feted or admired. They will be dismissed as nearly men.

History is unforgiving of those who fall just short. And that’s why, for all the excellent work they’ve done in the past two years, there is still a step to take. We’re too early in the season to describe Sunday’s clash with Manchester City at the Etihad as a title decider. Yet Arsenal need a statement win because they need to damage Manchester City and to demonstrate to themselves that they are the team of the moment.

Their great forebearers, the Arsenal team of 1998, the best Arsenal side I faced, did something just like that when they came to Old Trafford and won 1-0. That kind of result didn’t normally happen to us in domestic games that we needed to win. But they stood up to us, went toe to toe in the midfield battle and put down a marker, planting their flag on our turf.

Arsenal need that. You have the feeling that when they went to The Etihad last March and got a 0-0 draw, they felt pleased with themselves. It is of course true that had they beaten Aston Villa at home, as they might have expected to, they would have still won the league. But in reality that result at The Etihad wasn’t enough, They needed to hurt City, to hole them below the water line. By drawing they kept them afloat and alive in the title race.

It’s bloody hard work winning the league. No-one hands it to you. It was like that for Sir Alex Ferguson’s Manchester United when they finally got there in 1992, having to wait for Liverpool and Arsenal’s dominance to wane. It was true of Liverpool in 2020, who went so close and finally delivered a relentless season that even saw City succumb.

For Pep Guardiola has built a machine. Manchester Ciy have everything you want: money, superb infrastructure, world-class players and a genius coach. Plus all the trophies. Arsenal are up against one of best teams football has seen. They’re attempting to move a mountain. They’re trying to knock a cruise ship off its path in a speed boat. They’re Rocky in Russia, up against the perfectly-designed and superbly-trained champion boxer.

So they have to be brave. That draw last season wasn’t enough. They need a shift in mentality whereby holding their own isn’t sufficient. They’re so almost there. They are such a good team and Saliba and Gabriel are rapidly becoming one of the best Premier League partnerships ever. I’ve been blown away by the quality of Arsenal’s defensive structure. Last weekend against Spurs, their overall display was poor by their high standards. But as a controlled performance, with key players missing, it was excellent. It was like a precision hit, as though Mikel Arteta had said: “We’ve got one bullet and we’re going to fire it when we can cause maximum damage.” After that 64th minute set-piece goal, it was a case of holding them off and they did so superbly.

I love the way this Arsenal team defend and the way football has gone recently. City have a big back four of tough, muscular defenders. Arsenal are a solid unit and defend deep at times, soaking up pressure like old Arsenal of George Graham, when “1-0 to the Arsenal” was their signature tune. It’s not just nostalgia. There’s something deeply satisfying that old-fashioned principles are still part of the game. Soaking up pressure with four big strong defenders, who are all good in the air, is a throwback. And the emphasis on set pieces reminiscent of the 1990s.

When you win the title, there are many tough matches away from home where you expect it to be 0-0 at half time. You know you have to score between 60 and 75 minutes to establish your foothold. And that after that you have to soak up the waves of pressure. But if you can hold back the tide, you can then breakaway on 90 minutes and win 2-0. That’s a perfomance that puts opponents in their place.

Arsenal need something like that at The Etihad on Sunday. Not because dropping points would be fatal to their title challenge. But to demonstrate that they are the team to take out City. To show they are capable of being dominant in this duel. They need to believe that this is their time, this is their moment.

Quiz Answer:

Thierry Henry