Pep Guardiola has a lot of good things to say about Arsenal ahead of his team’s meeting with them this weekend.
The Spaniard will take his in-form and unbeaten team to the Emirates to face his former assistant manager, Mikel Arteta.
Arsenal eliminated the Citizens on their way to winning the FA Cup last season, but City has already beaten them twice since then, including the reverse of this fixture earlier in the season.
Guardiola’s team is arguably the best team in Europe right now, but the Spaniard is full of respect for Arsenal.
He claimed that Arsenal will have a fine game against his side with the quality of their build-up play.
He then singled out Emile Smith Rowe, Bukayo Saka and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang as danger men for the Gunners and added that Auba’s runs in behind make him a serious problem for opponents.
“We will have an incredible performance [from Arsenal],” Guardiola told reporters on Friday as quoted by Express Sports.
“They have an exceptional build-up, they move with many, many sense, all the movements they have for the build-up to the final third.
“The quality for incredible energy, for Smith [Rowe], Saka and Aubameyang, especially with his runs in behind, and all the players that they have in the middle.
“In the early future they will be real contenders to fight for the titles.”
Arteta will no doubt be pleased with the comments from his former boss but all he will be interested in right now is getting all three points.
pre match BS…
Reality, they are back locked into winning habits; top of the league!
let’s focus on us and hope arteta puts right 11 on pitch.
Not for satisfied draw nor shaky leeds win; so we gun them down!!!
I wish Saka and Smith-Rowe player together for a very long time
This man is just playing mind games…. Praising those players does not mean he’s afraid to beat the hell outta us.
Artate should not go to the game with fear, the boys should come out and play with confidence, and he should learn how to make early changes.
This man is playing mind games. He wants this to get into the minds of the players so that they relax and fail to give their ‘wounded’ all