Arsenal v Man City Match Preview, Line-up and score prediction – Cup final revenge?

Arsenal have the bad luck to have to face the Champions-elect Man City just four days after being embarrassed in the League Cup final by Pep Guardiola’s side, but Arsene Wenger is very hopeful that his team can pick themselves up to try and get revenge at the Emirates, where the Gunners have only lost one League game all season.

The Boss said: “First of all, no matter how much you try to lift the players, they need time for grieving. You need to digest that and only time helps. The next target helps again. The DNA and the values of the club help because that’s where you want to stick together. What you want at our level is to be confronted with difficult situations and respond to it in a positive way.”

Personally I think it will be very difficult to come back so quickly against the same team, as City are in a supremely confident mood. In fact if the Gunners lose to night it will already be mathematically impossible for Arsenal to win the League even though there are still ten games remaining.

The concensus is even saying that City didn’t play to their usual high quality in the Cup Final, and we can probably expect them to be even more dangerous tonight. One good bit of news for the Gunners is that Fernandinho is not likely to play after suffering a hamstring injury, but Guardiola has more than enough quality squad players to replace like for like.

Arsenal themselves lost Monreal in the Final, and our defence looks very suspect at the moment, I think Wenger will give most of his players a chance to redeem a bit of pride and expect to see much the same team at the Emirates this evening.

So my prediction is…

Cech
Bellerin  Chambers Mustafi  Koscielny  Kolasinac
Xhaka Wilshere Ramsey
Iwobi Ozil
Aubameyang

And to be honest I don’t think I can feel any confidence whatever, but I am just hoping that Arsenal show a bit more fight at home and can get a 2-2 draw-

What do you think?

Admin

40 Comments

  1. Hmmm you have 11 outfield players!!
    You Mikki instead of Iwobi or have I missed that he’s injured or something? Also drop Chambers.

    1. If we are gonna play with 12 players I think we should put Cech and Ospina in goal together!

  2. @Admin, why did you select twelve players? I think our players might have lost their confidence because of the amount of bad news and critics on the media

    Wenger has tried 4-3-3 and 5-4-1 against Guardiola’s Manchester City, with 1-3 and 0-3 as the result. I think he would use 4-2-3-1 tonight (very vulnerable to quick counter-attacks, but he has nothing else to lose):

    Cech
    Bellerin . Koscielny . Mustafi . Kolasinac
    …………….Ramsey . Xhaka
    Wilshere ……….. Ozil ……….. Mkhitaryan
    ………………..Aubameyang

    But it would be better to experiment with 4-1-3-2 or 3-5-2, since it seems impossible for Arsenal to reach a top four position):

    ……………………Cech
    Bellerin . Koscielny . Mustafi . Kolasinac
    …………………..Elneny
    ………..Ramsey . Ozil . Wilshere
    …….Mkhitaryan ….. Aubameyang

    1. I also would like to see something different, for my experiment i would like this 11 vs Man City
      ………………….Cech
      …Mustafi…Mertesacker…Koscielny
      AMN………..Wilshere………..Kolasinac
      …….Mhkitaryan……Ramsey
      …………Ozil
      …………………..Aubameyang

  3. Take Chambers away and you got your starting line up. Our players are not completing each other at all. It doesnt matter how you put them in, they are to similiar and dont give anything new to the play. Therefore we suck monkey balls.

  4. Well I hope we show up tonight!!
    Although his last couple of games have been a bit dodgy, I’d rather have Mkhi in for Iwobi! Plus I don’t want to see Chambers play!
    If we do lose I just hope EVERYONE puts a shift in!! I hope Auba scores…. think we all need a high after a lot of lows lately!! And no muff I don’t mean a splif!!

  5. The DNA and the values of the club help because that’s where you want to stick together. What you want at our level is to be confronted with difficult situations and respond to it in a positive way

    Wannabe salesman with his words play. Its either he takes others for idiots or he is to smart for his own good and doesnt know it yet, lol.

  6. Back here in USA; the weather looks seriously likely to postpone this game. Any word guys.

  7. my girl and me snowed in , both off work happy days…
    im thinking hey lets stay warm together-make it creative 🙂 – her response…i feel ill im going to bed

    shes turning into an akb- i know an akb when i see one
    wenger out

  8. I predict a more fighting perf tonight but another defeat, but closer this time. However, I HOPE for another spineless surrender as it will further pressure the club to sack the fossil. It is already clear that we are going to finish 6th this year. I do not think those below will catch us and we will win some of our remaining ten, after tonight, obviously. Above all I want a bad, STINKING exit to the Europa against ACMilan, which will be the sack clincher. NOTHING, except Wengers sacking is of any real importance this season. A miraculous winning of the Europa trophy would keep Wenger and therefore be a disaster, in disguise. But that will not be happening, so to just hasten his sacking is my hope and whatever that takes to hasten it, is what, and all, I want. Surely all fans who want to heal our regressed club want the same!

    1. I agree. A Europa league trophy might renew the old parasite’s conviction and give the board the half of an excuse they need to extend his contract. AC Milan loss and 6th place finish will be beautiful.

    2. Defeat today again might be a very good thing to happen even in Europa cup wenger needs to go if we really serious about being a bigger club again – and reality starting to catch up with him he has been hiding behind philosophy for so long now is out of excuses we brought in football people (Sanlehi, Sven and now we need a new manager who will be working with those guys and share ideas not a single person who kept mediocrity players for years and pay them for nothing and bring in one or two players and send them out on loan

    3. This needs to be a terrible March in order for Wenger to get sacked. We’re all used to Arsenal being horrendous this time of year, so may as well finally get something good out of it.

    4. I will like to caution those wishing the club ill luck for the purpose of sacking Wenger to mind what they wish.

      Yes, I want the best for the club. And I support a positive change of manager that will take the club to greater glory (not anything but Wenger).
      We should match our expectation with the objective of the club.

      Based of recent activities in the club regarding recruitment (players/non players), I think the club is silently working on something positive for the future. What we the fans need is patience.

      Looking at the recent signing of players, I think the club has quietly filled the most costly part of the team (in attack). What is left is finding a quality goal keeper, at least a center back, a reliable defensive midfielder, a dependable box to box and a quality winger.

      Most fans here prefer to blame the defense for our recent failings. Yes, though they make occasional errors, I think the holding midfield position and the wing is where we are mostly weak. We lack cutting edges on the wing. Take a look at the winger of other top 6 clubs and look at our own, you would see a huge gap.
      When a team have a dependable mid field that can maintain possession for a reasonable time and also curtail the opponents’ possession, it would transcend confidence in the whole team. In this squad, I see a team where players at the back are not confident in their team mates in the middle whenever they are building from the back. When they pass to the mid fielders, they find themselves receiving the ball under pressure from the same midfielders with a short time. And the attacking midfielders and forwards are not getting quality service consistently.

      I won’t be surprised to see the likes of Ramsey, Wilshere, El Neny, Xhaka released in the coming transfer window for better players to come in.

      1. So you say is not Wenger to blame on all these? he is the one who has been saying “i am the one who decides” the main problem here has been recruitment policy and for Wilshere/Ramsey(injuries) they should let them move on and Elney not good enough to play for arsena even Shaka should let go even for cut price

  9. Yes 2-2 is a good guess, if we play with twelve, like you suggest, and if Man City get a couple sent off in the first 15 minutes. Especially if Wenger gets stuck in the snow on the way there, and can’t set the tactics.

    1. i really really pray for arsenal to lose tonigh if the game is one to expidite wenger’s exist

      1. If you’re gonna pray, pray for a miracle buddy, pray that Arsenal …starting from today …go on and beat the 49 game record (which should have been fifty only for a cheat) Pray that for whatever reason, our expensively assembled team ..actually begin playing like an expensively assembled team, and it was only settling/gelling/teething issues that made us look bad. A wing and a prayer!!!!!

        1. If there is anything can make wenger leave today after the game or next summer i am for, otherwise there is no way i can see Arsenal being run as a big club anymore. we lost Carabao final, Europe we will be out, top 4 out of reach, today’s game lost even before played!

  10. Snow will stop another bashing, but I see no reason City won’t win. I know after a big loss we tend to think Arsenal will try extra hard the next game, but its not happening this time. This squad is devoid of confidence, and have little chance of beating one of the best teams in Europe. 2-0 to City, and then hopefully Milan knock us out and we get real change. This seasons already a bust and better to think long term at this point.

    1. RHS, can you imagine keep players like Rosicky/Diaby in the past for so long and keep buy avarage players and send them out on loan?
      keep walcott for over ten years, bring in chambers/holding and expect to beat barcelone, bayern etc? before power was too much on one person hand! and you Mert was not good enough after last good FA cup final performance and Kosy has some serious issue with Achilles? man to me thats being out of touch

      1. Yeah I think Arsenal need to move players quicker. Have no idea how some deadwood managed to stay around so long. There have been back room changes that is supposed to help recruitment and get better talents. I dont think Holding was a bad buy either. He clearly has talent, but the coaching isn’t there at the moment. When Wenger’s coaching methods come out, it’s always about how little he says in training, and how extremely hands off he is. Maybe this worked in the past, but it’s not anymore. Bellerin, Holding, Chambers, Iwobi, are all players that started out great when introduced to first team, but then became bang average (or worse) after about a season. That’s not natural.

        1. “we need two world class players in every position” thats the quote from Usmanov which i really agree with him same thing spanish big two has been doing for a long run and thats why European Championship has been changing hands because of quality they have in their squad same thing can not be said when you come to Arsenal approach we are way below in England i can Man city doing same thing pep brought with him

  11. I’m not sure what Chambers has done lately to get so many down votes. If we are going by form alone well then Mustafi Koscielny Cech & Xhaka are the ones you don’t want anywhere near the starting eleven. Of course we do not have the privilege of dropping many players and replacing with any sort of guarantee. But Chambers has actually shown some improvement this season, esp passing, not enough to nail down a place but he’s shown that there is hope for him yet. That’s the way I see it anyhow. Yes you could show me examples that would make me sound stupid, but it’s a numbers game, and I stand by the words on my second sentence.

    1. Yes, i forgot Mustafi and with all respect chambers in not good enough to play for Arsenal to me is like a project one for the future, Madrid, Barcelona, juventus, Bayern, PSG name me any player who play for those teams whom his position will be taken by chambers in term of football ability?

      1. I believe Juventus could improve Chambers, like so many youngsters coming through that set up I think they would give time/patience and he might possibly learn from players like Chiellini Lichtensteiner Sandro Barzagli and Bonuci when he was around. They have coaches that actually know the art to defending. Chambers is probably at a similar level to D. Rugani or even further ahead with him winning with the England youths and getting an early England call before he even joined Arsenal.

        1. At this point to have chambers as our main centre back you will be asking too much!
          Arsenal we dont have even our 1st back 4 they all have issues Mustafi (consistency) Kozy (injuries) Mert (age/consistancy) and still our manager doesnt see that ! sooner he goes the better

  12. Arsenal biggest problems for last ten years has been three(3)
    1. recruitment 2. recruitment 3. recruitment

    football punduts, ex players and people who dont even know football all say same thing

  13. I cannot believe anyone who witnessed Sundays debacle could possibly include Mustafi.Chambers is being hammered by fans without justification.He was better than Mustafi and Kosc on Sunday and should play alongside Holding.Test them against the best.We have nothing to lose as we will never make the top four.

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