When a club suffers four league defeats in five attempts, and are embarrassed by a rival on the biggest stage, it would usually be considered unthinkable that a two-year contract would remain on the table for the manager who oversaw such results, but Arsenal have developed into a football club which goes against the logical step. Their loyalty to Arsene Wenger - especially in the modern-day game - is admirable and there are teams up and down the country who could learn a thing or two from how the Gunners hierarchy run their ship. Nevertheless, the longer they continue a stance which will always attract criticism, they are contributing to tarnishing a legacy which should have been regarded as untouchable and every bad result they suffer under Wenger's guidance will only result in more discontent in the stands.
Various betting offers have surfaced since speculation first emerged of a potential Wenger stay or exit, and they will continue to do so until the club announces, as expected, that he has agreed to remain at the helm for a further two seasons, but if Manchester City run riot in North London on Sunday afternoon, the air will soon turn blue and there will be more calls for Wenger to call time on his reign. There has been some suggestion that he deserves to make the final decision on when he ends his spell in the Arsenal dugout but if reports are to be believed, he gives the impression of a man who needs to be pushed rather than being allowed to walk and whatever the result against City, it is unlikely to have any impact on his insistence that he remains the right man for the job.
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The blame for the backward steps made in recent months lies, first and foremost, with Wenger, but fingers are also being pointed at key members of the first-team squad. Alexis Sanchez's effort, work-rate and quality in the final third cannot be questioned but he cuts a figure of a man who is already thinking about where he can play next season, while Mesut Ozil's lackadaisical approach means his commitment will always be questioned, despite the German's movement rarely being singled out when things are going well for the club. The biggest concern for Wenger will be the ease with which teams are scoring against them. Based on league positions, their best clean sheet of 2017 has come at home to Crystal Palace.
Arsenal will be confident that they can at least get on the scoresheet against Man City given the success that both AS Monaco and Liverpool had against their backline in recent matches, but it goes without saying that Wenger cannot adopt a gung-ho approach as they look to make ground on a team who sit seven points ahead of them in the league standings. Sergio Aguero wasted numerous chances in both of those fixtures, but he has still netted seven goals in as many games since being restored to the starting lineup as a replacement for Gabriel Jesus. Leroy Sane has been equally hit and miss, but the pair have developed an understanding since Sane came into the team and he will help keep Hector Bellerin in defensive areas rather than the Spaniard helping Theo Walcott further forward.
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The most intriguing battle of the match could come in midfield with neither Wenger nor Pep Guardiola possessing great quality when it comes to competing in the centre of pitch. From Arsenal's perspective, Francois Coquelin has never been the biggest tackler, whereas Granit Xhaka has developed a reputation for mistiming most of his. As for City, Fernandinho's discipline has been questionable all season and Yaya Toure has never been the most energetic of players and doesn't necessarily suit a game like Sunday's, which could be played at a ferocious tempo. City's flair players generally have a greater impact on games than Arsenal's do, though, so Kevin De Bruyne and David Silva could be key.
Bookmakers consider Arsenal to be the underdogs on Sunday afternoon - it has been a while since that has happened ahead of a Premier League match - but bets can still be placed on City at attractive betting odds. Regardless of who is in charge, Arsenal are always going to be capable of turning on the style when they play in front of their own supporters and other than Sanchez, they still have the likes of Walcott, Olivier Giroud and Danny Welbeck who can pop up with a goal. However, City are slowly becoming a well-oiled machine under Guardiola and he will get the best out of his team this weekend with the fear factor well and truly gone at the Emirates.
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