This is an excellent time for Arsenal to play a vulnerable Manchester City team. This is not the City we saw during the early weeks of the season.
Sergio Aguero and Fernandinho are suspended and now Ilkay Gundogan has a serious knee injury.
So some of their top-quality players are not there and they are lacking confidence. Yes, they beat Watford 2-0 in midweek but Watford created some very good chances.
I expect Arsenal to get after City although they know that if they are too ambitious, Kevin De Bruyne and Raheem Sterling can do serious damage to them on the counter-attack.
Arsenal do miss Santi Cazorla in midfield, especially when they need to keep the ball and retain control of a game but they have great depth.
Their first XI used to pick itself but no longer.
City’s results next season will give us a better idea of Pep Guardiola’s work. He is tweaking, changing formation and personnel more than any other coach and I get the impression he is testing the players. Some of them he probably doesn’t want.
The quality we are seeing in the biggest games this season is so high. There seems to be a real appetite among the top sides to get to the top of the tree.
They are superbly fit, well-coached and very hungry. The intensity in these matches — City v Chelsea, Liverpool v Manchester United, Tottenham v City — has been unbelievable.
When you’re preparing for the biggest games, there is always an edge in training.
The Arsenal players with expiring contracts
When I was at Liverpool, Manchester United were always the yardstick. There was an extra focus in training and a huge attention to detail.
You would be very aware of potential problems and quick to sort them out during the sessions.
You need to keep your shape, retain your defensive discipline, communicate effectively, double up when necessary, press at the right times and in the right areas.
If you’re found even slightly wanting in one of these aspects, you will probably lose the game.
The other key is for the best players to turn up. This is where the good players can achieve greatness and Steven Gerrard and Michael Owen were two of the best at performing in the big matches.
Playing alongside them, you felt a certain security because you always felt they would do something magical.
Who will deliver on Sunday? I have written many times how much I admire Alexis Sanchez and although Arsenal lost at Everton in midweek, I don’t think it will derail them too much.
Arsenal have not lost to City in any competition for nearly three years — and I believe they can extend that record on Sunday.
