Man City v Arsenal predictions: Five things we think will happen
The FA Cup fourth round is here and it kicks off with a barnstormer: Manchester City vs Arsenal.
The top two sides in the Premier League right now, it’s both a shame that one will have to exit the FA Cup so early and a wonder that we’re getting a big clash so early.
Arsenal have looked formidable in the league, dropping points in just three of their 19 matches, and knocked Oxford United out of the FA Cup third round.
Man City are five points behind Arsenal in the league having played a game more, but have been made to work even harder in the domestic cups. After beating Chelsea and Liverpool in the EFL Cup (later losing to Southampton), Man City had to beat the Blues once more in the third round of the FA Cup.
Due to postponements earlier in the season, this is the first meeting between Man City and Arsenal in 2022/23, so for some this could be a major test for Mikel Arteta’s charges. All eyes will be on this Friday night game, and the best way to follow alongside your TV view is with the new Squawka Live app at hand.
Squawka Live not only allows you to keep track of the latest scores and your favourite teams but also brings stats to the small screen, providing real-time updates so you never miss a beat.
With the Alerts feature you can also preset triggers that will notify you if specific in-play events such as match time, odds changes and goals/points happen. So we’ve come up with five matches for you to follow with predictions and which triggers will come in useful to track your options.
How to use Squawka Live's Alert triggers
With Squawka Live's Alert triggers, you can preset triggers that will notify you if specific in-play events occur. To set up your own triggers, follow the steps below.
- Download the Squawka Live app on the App Store or Google Play (here's the link). Currently, the app is available in the UK only.
- Find your selected live event and navigate to the Alerts tab.
- Click on create your first Alert and select a specific trigger.
- Select the event detail you want to receive a notification for.
- The Alert will be added to your home screen and you will be notified when your chosen event has occurred.
No clean sheets
The trigger: Over 0.5 Man City goals
The bet: Both teams to score
Friday’s game will see two of the best attacks in England go head to head, and it’s hard to see either being stopped. In the home corner, Arsenal have scored in 25 of their 27 games across all competitions this season. The only teams to have prevented Arsenal from finding the net are PSV and Newcastle.
Man City, meanwhile, have only keep kept out on four occasions from 31 matches across all competitions. Southampton, Borussia Dortmund, Liverpool and FC Copenhagen have been the successful teams so far, but the two Champions League blanks came with qualification already guaranteed.
However, it is worth noting that historically both teams haven’t scored in this fixture. In the 13 games since the start of the 2017/18 season, both teams have scored in just four meetings between Man City and Arsenal.
Eddie Nketiah to continue his run
When it comes to goals in this fixture, all eyes will naturally be on Erling Haaland. The Norwegian has scored 31 goals already this season, 14 more than any other Premier League player across all competitions and hit his fourth hat-trick of the season against Wolves at the weekend.
But there is another man for defenders to keep an eye on, and he plays for Arsenal. When Gabriel Jesus was injured at the World Cup, there were some worries among the Arsenal fanbase — and glee from their rivals — that their season could be derailed. Who would they get in to replace Jesus, as Eddie Nketiah clearly wasn’t up to the job?
Well, it turns out that Nketiah is very much up to the job. Since Arsenal returned from their World Cup break, Nketiah has scored six goals in six games across all competitions, including two against Manchester United at the weekend. It was Nketiah who equalised after Marcus Rashford’s opener in the first half and then won the game for Arsenal in injury-time, vital for another big Gunners victory.
Man City’s defence is in trouble.
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A fast start to the second half
The trigger: Match Time: HT
The bet: Next goal: Arsenal
Arsenal have been very impressive this season, often outplaying their opponents, relying less on the lucky wins. That doesn’t mean they haven’t had slow starts to matches, but the Gunners often turn up sooner rather than later.
In fact, they often turn up just after half-time, catching their opponents when perhaps their focus is down. In the Premier League this season, Arsenal have scored 13 goals in the first 15 minutes of the second half, more than any other team in England’s top flight.
Man City, meanwhile, have shown recently that they are prone to switching off, conceding two goals in quick succession in their matches against Southampton, Man Utd and Tottenham.
Rodri to be booked
Although things will be friendly between Mikel Arteta and Pep Guardiola, given their history with each other, on the pitch expect the game to get needly.
Given how close these two sides are in quality, there may be a struggle for control in the midfield, especially if the likes of Granit Xhaka, Thomas Partey and Rodri are up for it. Rodri in particular is susceptible to a yellow card.
The Spaniard has been booked in each of Man City’s past two matches against Arsenal, but it’s worth noting he also scored in both of those matches… Overall, Rodri has six yellow cards across all competitions this season, including one in the FA Cup.
Arsenal to qualify
The trigger: When Arsenal win hits desired odds
The bet: Arsenal to win
This will definitely be Arsenal’s biggest test of the season so far, but there’s no reason for Gunners fans to be pessimistic. Sure, they don’t have a good record overall against Man City, but they do where it matters.
Arsenal have won just two of their past 15 games against Man City across all competitions, and go into this game off the back of five-straight defeats. However, both of Arsenal’s wins during that run have come in the FA Cup.
In 2017, Arsenal beat Man City 2-1 after extra-time in the semi-finals en route to winning the trophy and they repeated the feat three years later — though did it in normal time in 2020.
In fact, Arsenal have only lost one of their five FA Cup matches against Man City, with that sole defeat coming in the first meeting back in 1904 when the Gunners were still playing in south London.
