Journalist Adrian Clarke has now named one Arsenal star who will be crucial to the Gunners’ plan for beating Manchester City.
Mikel Arteta will already have a very clear game plan in mind for when Arsenal travel to face Manchester City on Sunday.
The Gunners will have to be at their best if they are to stand any chance of overcoming the reigning Premier League champions on their own patch. Arsenal have a very poor recent record against Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium, and have suffered some heavy, humiliating defeats at that ground.
However, the north London outfit have good reasons to believe that they now have what it takes to pull off a statement victory in the north west.
This is a very different Arsenal side to those that have gone before in recent times. Arteta has built a squad capable of competing against the very best for the top prizes in the game, as evidenced by the fact that the Gunners are currently in pole position in the Premier League table with ten games left to go, just ahead of both Liverpool and Manchester City.
Arsenal are also capable of winning against the top teams, too. This season they have already beaten Manchester United, Manchester City, and have taken four points off of Liverpool. They won’t be afraid of the threat that Pep Guardiola’s side pose, and Arteta will have a masterplan for beating them again in place.
Declan Rice hailed as man to make the difference against Manchester City
Adrian Clarke believes that one key player in this Arsenal side could make all the difference on Sunday. Speaking on the Handbrake Off podcast, the reporter said, “we’ve got a big match formula, haven’t we, that we’ve used of late? It has worked…I think that box of four at the top end of the pitch is massive. So you’ve got Kai Havertz, who basically is your striker, but when we don’t have the ball he drops back alongside Odegaard.”
“They’re the first line of defence, two very good pressers. Then you’ve got behind them, to form this kind of box, you’ve got Rice and Jorginho. Those four are absolutely critical to the way we go and win this game and the way that we stifle Manchester City’s midfield…Rice, obviously, is the game-changer there.”
Rice has been a revelation at Arsenal this season. He brings so much steel to the middle of the park. Arsenal icon Gilberto Silva has hailed Rice for being a midfield ‘monster.’
READ MORE: Everything to know about Arsenal ace Declan Rice from his girlfriend to height
How Arsenal can stand up to Manchester City
The way that the former West Ham United man works in combination with the likes of Jorginho, Kai Havertz, and club captain Martin Odegaard makes the Gunners incredibly difficult to breakdown. Rice and Jorginho have forged a particularly effective partnership, as the 32-year-old veteran’s composure and impeccable positioning free up the England star to roam forward.
Havertz also brings so much additional physicality to the team. Along with Rice, the German helps to ensure that Arsenal win more than their fair share of duels in opposition territory. Meanwhile, Odegaard has been dubbed a “perfect” Arsenal captain for the way he leads by example in his relentless efforts to press and win back the ball.
This quartet, with Rice at the heart of things, will give the Gunners the platform they need to go toe-to-toe with Manchester City.
