Manchester City v Arsenal: Premier League betting preview, free tip & TV details

Free football tips, best bets and analysis for Manchester City v Arsenal in the Premier League.

Where to watch

Sky Sports Premier League & Main Event, 8.15pm Wednesday

Best bets

Man City to win 3-0
0.5pt 10-1 bet365
Man City to win 3-1
0.5pt 11-1 bet365

Team news

Man City
Pep Guardiola has no injury concerns with Aymeric Laporte and Leroy Sane back in full training.

Arsenal
Calum Chambers remains out but Mikel Arteta has an otherwise fully-fit squad to select from.

Match preview

The Premier League returns in a very different state than it was before the coronavirus-enforced hiatus but some things never change and Manchester City should once again thump Arsenal at an empty Etihad Stadium.

City were practising social distancing against Arsenal long before it became compulsory and any Gunners fans desperate to see their side in action after a break of just over 100 days will have felt that enthusiasm ebbing away from the moment it was confirmed a trip to Manchester was first up.

The last six meetings, including a League Cup final at Wembley, have all gone in favour of City by at least a two-goal margin and it is understandable to see Pep Guardiola's outfit rated short-priced favourites to begin with a bang.

Fitness of both teams will have to be taken on trust, although Project Restart has been going long enough for master planner Pep to have created a formula which results in a comfortable triumph.

City's hopes of once again locking down the Premier League title went up in smoke long before a halt was called in mid-March with the champions 25 points behind runaway leaders Liverpool despite expected goal models painting a very different picture.

According to that metric, City remain the best side in the country but a combination of bad luck and a lack of efficiency in both boxes has produced a gulf between the top two which may give a false indication of what could happen next season. Whenever that is.

For now City have to concentrate on finding their rhythm ahead of the Champions League resumption - a probable finals tournament likely to be in Lisbon in August that will look like a World Cup or European Championship knockout stage - as well as hoping their lawyers are able to overturn an upcoming two-year ban from Europe's elite competition.

That decision could have major ramifications for Arsenal too.

The ninth-placed Gunners have little chance of making up eight points on fourth-placed Chelsea, however, if Champions League qualification goes down to fifth that could become more manageable as Mikel Arteta's men are five points behind Manchester United with this difficult game in hand.

One Premier League defeat in 11 since sacking Unai Emery suggests Arteta has turned things around at Arsenal, in theory at least, and as City's former assistant to Guardiola he is as likely as anyone to know the strengths or weaknesses of their opponents.

But defensively Arsenal still make too many mistakes and the dozy individual errors were there for all to see in last week's 3-2 friendly defeat to Brentford at the Emirates.

Arsenal clearly pack a punch in the final third with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Alexandre Lacazette and Nicolas Pepe in the front three and playmaker Mesut Ozil behind them which makes a consolation goal a real possibility.

That is reflected in the goal line which has moved from over/under 2.5 to 3.5 and City are set to do most of the damage.

Arsenal's defence has been bamboozled by the quality of Sergio Aguero, Gabriel Jesus, Bernardo Silva, Raheem Sterling and Kevin De Bruyne on many occasions in the recent past and they should be again.

Many things have changed in the world over the last three months but some things never do. Expect a cosy home win.

Key stat

Man City have won their last six matches against Arsenal by an aggregate of 17-2.

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