• Mikel Arteta says the win against Tottenham has given the team great confidence that they can win at the Etihad Stadium.
• West Ham was a team I picked to do well this season but it is just not happening in the way coach Julen Lopetegui would wish.
Image: /FILE
The teams come into this battle having scraped a win last weekend. It is a match featuring the best defence in the league (Arsenal) against the best attack (Manchester City).
Phil Foden is back in contention for City and Rodri was called upon at halftime last weekend after arriving back late from an extended summer break.
He reported to the medical team on his arrival with a couple of niggling injuries and missed the fixtures before the international break. Last week, City played with Mateo Kovacic covering Rodri’s position and he performed brilliantly.
Guardiola will use the rotation system to keep both players fit. Two important players will be missing, Kevin De Bruyne limped out of the City game in the Champions League match against Inter Milan and Arsenal’s Martin Odegaard is still injured.
Guardiola has the luxury of bringing in other players who were doubtful including Ilkay Gundogan, Kyle Walker and John Stones all of whom played a part against Brentford as they fight back to full fitness.
Savinho should be fit since his leg problem last weekend was cramp. Haaland is simply Haaland, dangerous, scoring two hat-tricks and then a pair and Ben White, William Saliba, Gabriel Magalhaes and Jurrien Timber will do well to contain him in the Arsenal defence.
Timber was originally brought in to play at right-back and provide cover and relieve pressure on White. One year on and it is not White but Oleksandr Zinchenko who has made way for the versatile Dutchman.
Mikel Arteta says the win against Tottenham has given the team great confidence that they can win at the Etihad Stadium. He pointed out that his team played a masterful defence and Heung-min Son and co. could not break them down.
He says the same will happen at City. He commented: “The players believe already…it’s a big game for us and this is going to give us a lot of motivation, energy and belief.”
West Ham V Chelsea
It has been a long time coming but at last, Christopher Nkunku is proving why Chelsea paid £53million for him. Nicolas Jackson keeps missing chances and Nkunku is the better option at the moment.
Noni Madueke is another player suddenly displaying his class, speed, dribbling skills and crossing ability. He is linking perfectly with Cole Palmer and with Moises Caicedo behind him. Chelsea are looking more like the team coach Enzo Maresca promised.
When Chelsea signed Villarreal’s Filip Jorgensen it was assumed he would take over from Robert Sanchez in goal.
However, after his spectacular sequence last weekend, with five saves from seven inside the area, including a penalty, Maresca raced up and hugged the goalkeeper as the final whistle blew. Sanchez looks safe for now, but the coach has a harder decision to make: who will play at right back until Reece James is fully fit?
Axel Disasi hasn’t looked comfortable in his last two games but Malo Gusto and James haven’t recovered from hamstring injuries. Jadon Sancho has new life injected into his legs and will eventually become the regular choice on the left.
He linked up well with Marc Cucurella and Pedro Neto could be moved over to the right where he will do battle for a starting place with Madueke who has been in splendid form and was upset that he was subbed against Bournemouth last weekend.
West Ham was a team I picked to do well this season but it is just not happening in the way coach Julen Lopetegui would wish.
West Ham’s problem is that their defence and attack look like two teams forced to play together without understanding or being capable of playing flowing football.
Many thought Danny Ings should have moved in the summer as the club spent £120million on new players and he was told he was not in the coach’s plans. Southampton called but the 32-year-old told them he wanted to fight for his place at the Hammers.
He increased his claim for a place by saving West Ham a point last weekend with a last-minute goal. Lopetegui even told his team that Ings was an example of who they should follow. He might not start but will be on the pitch sometime.
The Hammers’ Emerson Palmieri had to be replaced after limping off against Fulham over the weekend and will take a late medical test. Nicolas Fullkrug had to sit out the game after being injured on international duty.
Crystal Palace V Manchester United
Marcus Rashford seems to have rediscovered his goal-scoring ability having notched up one last weekend against Southampton and two more in midweek in the Carabao Cup.
Crystal Palace have only two draws to their credit this season and their home record hasn’t been very impressive with losses against Brentford and West Ham although they drew at Chelsea.
United are likely to stick with Joshua Zirkzee upfront with Rashford and Amad Diallo on the wings and Bruno Fernandes playing just behind Zirkzee in the centre.
Kobbie Mainoo has done well in midfield and he will be partnered by either Christian Eriksen or Manuel Ugarte, who impressed after coming on against Southampton. He completed 13 passes and winning back possession on three occasions and was constantly asking for the ball to be played forward and not sideways by the centre-backs.
In May Palace beat United 4-0 with goals from Michael Olise, Jean-Philippe Mateta and Tyrick Mitchell. Mateta and Mitchell are still there but Olise has been replaced by Arsenal’s Eddie Nketiah, who has impressed and put in plenty of shots including a bicycle kick against Leicester last weekend.
The Palace defence still looks vulnerable despite having Marc Guehi in the centre of a back-three. New boy Maxence Lacroix should be better this weekend as he settles in and Nathaniel Clyne can step up to a higher level. They will be severely tested by Rashford, Alejandro Garnacho and Zirkzee.
Tottenham V Brentford
Tottenham’s attractive style of football produces goals and against Arsenal at the weekend they had 63 per cent of the possession but failed to deal with a set-piece.
It will not be lost on Brentford coach Thomas Frank that Spurs have conceded 18 times from set-pieces since the start of last season. Coaches have realised that if you defend strongly against the north London club, they will provide you with chances.
Last season, Postecoglou said he was more interested in the way Tottenham played than results. This season, however, everyone at the club expects goals and a winning mentality. He has been rather short-tempered this week when constantly asked why Tottenham are not performing better.
At the back Pedro Porro, Cristian Romero, Mickey van de Ven and Destiny Udogie are vulnerable to balls sent into the box and Keane Lewis-Potter, Yoane Wissa and Bryan Mbeumo have been practicing all week, receiving balls into the penalty area.
Brentford’s midfielders Christian Norgaard, Kristoffer Ajer and Mikkel Damsgaard have been briefed while watching video footage of Tottenham struggling to deal with crosses.
Up front, Tottenham captain Son Heung-Min, Dominic Solanke and Brennan Johnson are yet to click, which gives Brentford a great chance of taking advantage of a Spurs side who are still suffering from the loss to bitter rivals Arsenal last weekend.