Arsenal v Manchester City: Gunners Face Stern Examination Against Wounded City

Arsenal’s interim manager, Freddie Ljungberg got his first Premier League win on Monday, with a 3-1 away victory at West Ham. Goals from Gabriel Martinelli, Nicolas Pepe and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang left the Hammers fans wondering what went wrong earlier in the campaign as the Gunners scored all three goals in a nine-minute spell.

Things don’t get any easier for Arsenal this weekend in the Premier League as Manchester City roll into the big smoke on the back of a 2-1 home loss to local rivals Manchester United last weekend. Sunday’s game at the Emirates Stadium – kick: off 16:30 GMT – will give Pep Guardiola’s side the chance to regain the winning thread domestically.

Ten points separate the two teams after sixteen games so far this season, with reigning Premier League champions, Manchester City currently lying in third place on 32 points. In seasons past, an average of two points per game would be enough to be at the top of the league table, or at least very close, but the consistency of Manchester City – and more latterly – Liverpool has changed the landscape, with the Merseysiders currently sitting a further fourteen points clear of last season’s title winners. Arsenal are in ninth place before this weekend’s fixtures and can ill afford to drop further behind the chasing pack for the Champions’ League spots at the end of the season.

So, who will come out on top in this fixture? Please read on for our thoughts on the big game for the latest odds and betting advice.

Date: December 15, 2019

Match Odds

The bookmakers tend to believe that this game is likely to be a routine victory for Manchester City, with the Sky Blues being the prohibitively short price of 4/9 with Coral and Betfred, with several other layers offering the same best industry price. As last weekend proved however, Pep Guardiola’s side are far from bomb-proof these days, so by taking the short odds, it could be a nervous ninety minutes for short-price backers.

The Draw is next in the Match Odds pricing with an Emirates stalemate being available with VBet at 47/10, while another three points for Ljungberg, would be a huge boost to his hopes of gaining the Arsenal hot-seat on a permanent basis, and Ladbrokes and Coral offer the top price of 11/2 on the home side.

Arsenal were in Europa League action against Standard Liege on Thursday evening, and already have injury problems at the full-back positions in particular. Hector Bellerin and Kieran Tierney were both injured at the London Stadium against West Ham, which is not ideal for the interim boss. Manchester City will have the benefit of an extra 24 hours preparation for this game following a 4-1 Champions’ League win on Wednesday evening against Dinamo Zagreb, and Guardiola had the luxury of being able to rest some key players. It is a very short price on an away team, but Manchester City do look to be very likely winners of this game on balance.

Individual Goal Scorers

Sergio Aguero

As with any high-profile Premier League game, the list of attacking talent is obvious and this contest is no exception. Manchester City’s Sergio Aguero is battling to be fit for the game through injury, but the Argentine star heads the First Goal Scorer betting at 7/2 with Unibet and 888Sport.

Team-mate, Gabriel Jesus is next best at 4/1 to open the scoring in this game with Unibet and 888Sport again. Jesus drew a blank in last weekend’s Manchester Derby, but notched a hat-trick against Dinamo Zagreb in midweek and is worthy of noting if he makes the starting line-up in Aguero’s absence. England forward, Raheem Sterling is narrowly behind his Brazilian buddy at 24/5 – yet again with Unibet and 888Sport.

Arsenal’s first sighting for opening goal scorer calculations comes from former Borussia Dortmund striker, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who can be backed with Unibet and 888Sport once again at the best price of 7/1. The Gabon native has already bagged 11 Premier League goals this season and will be a big threat to the Manchester City defence.

French striker, Alexandre Lacazette is a best-priced 8/1 with Unibet and 888Sport to give Arsenal a flying start in this game, while youngster Gabriel Martinelli is likely to be popular in this market following his first Premier League goal against the Hammers on Monday night. The Brazilian youth star can be backed at 19/2 to score the first goal with, yes, you guessed it, Unibet and 888Sport.

Others to consider at larger prices would be Arsenal wide-man Nicolas Pepe at 14/1 with William Hill and Coral. Phil Foden is also worth noting at 14/1 with VBet. The England star is another who has had the benefit of rest over recent weeks, and could cause problems to the Arsenal defence, coming from deep areas.

Other Side Bets

One of the most obvious bets for this game is for Both Teams to Score. After noticing that the best price of 6/11 with SportingBet is not the most profitable selection, it does however look to be a very likely winner indeed.

I can only see goals in this contest, and I would also like to take a punt on Over 3.5 Goals at 10/11 with Betfred and SportingBet. Over 2.5 Goals is a similarly short price as Both Teams to Score of just 4/11 with William Hill, so the offer of almost odds-against for another goal is appealing enough to take on.

Coral offer 11/8 on Manchester City to win Sunday’s game with Both Teams to Score. If you fancy the Sky Blues to win this game, then this could well be the selection for you, as Arsenal are likely to score themselves, with both teams having defensive deficiencies.

Our Correct Score bet for the game is a 3-1 away win for Manchester City at a tempting 10/1 with Betfred. I’d be honestly amazed if his game didn’t have plenty of goals, with both teams being far stronger in an attacking sense than defensively, and this bet looks to suit our other selections.

Best Bets:

• Manchester City to Win the Match and Both Teams to Score at 11/8 with Coral.
• Over 3.5 Goals in the Match at 10/11 with SportingBet.
• Arsenal 1-3 Manchester City Correct Score bet at 10/1 with Betfred.