Man City vs Arsenal: Premier League team news and prediction

Defending Premier League champions Manchester City, face off against the current league leaders Arsenal in what could prove to be a huge match in determining who will finish top this season. 

Ahead of this one, we provide the necessary pre-match information, including where to watch the top of the table clash, team news and probable XIs. 

When is kick off?       

Wednesday 26th April, 20:00 GMT.  

Where is the match?       

Etihad Stadium, Manchester 

What TV channel is it on?       

BT Sport 1, BT Sport Ultimate and BT Sport App. 

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Form Guide 

Three days after booking their place in the Champions League semi-finals, Manchester City secured themselves a spot in the FA Cup final with a 3-0 win over Sheffield United on Saturday. They are now unbeaten in their last 16 matches in all competitions, which includes the 3-1 win over Arsenal at the Emirates in February. They have the best home record in the Premier League this season, losing one, drawing one and winning the other 13, while they have also scored more goals (50) than any team in the league on home soil this season. 

Arsenal drew their third game on the bounce on Friday night, as they came from behind to draw with Southampton 3-3, though it did mean they are now unbeaten in their last 10 matches in the Premier League, which is the longest active run of any team in the division. Away from home this season, they hold the best record in the league, having accumulated 36 points from a possible 48 available. 

Team news 

Nathan Ake will miss out here with a hamstring injury that he picked up against Bayern Munich. However, he is Manchester City's only concern here. 

Takehiro Tomiyasu and Mohamed Elneny both remain sidelined due to injury. Granit Xhaka missed Friday's match with Southampton owing to illness, but may return to the starting lineup for this game. William Saliba continues to be ruled out with a back injury. 

Probable XIs 

Manchester City (3-2-4-1): Ederson; Stones, Dias, Laporte; Rodri, Gundogan; Mahrez, De Bruyne, Silva, Grealish; Haaland. 

Arsenal (4-3-3): Ramsdale; White, Holding, Gabriel, Zinchenko; Odegaard, Partey, Xhaka; Saka, G.Jesus, Martinelli. 

Key battle: Jack Grealish vs Gabriel Martinelli 

The Premier League’s two best teams this season go head-to-head in a pivotal game in the title race, and there will be a number of key battles to watch out for, but perhaps none more so than Jack Grealish and Gabriel Martinelli, two players who have returned the same WhoScored rating (7.35) this season.

Jack Grealish struggled in his first season at the Etihad but has since come into his stride this campaign, and bar Erling Haaland and Kevin De Bruyne, it could be argued he has been one of City’s most important players. He has contributed to 11 goals in the league this season, a vast improvement on the six he was involved in last year. In all he has made 41 key passes this season, a steady sum for someone who has only made 24 appearances, and which is the second highest for City behind De Bruyne of course. When he is on the ball, few are able to really stop the former Aston Villa man, highlighted by the fact he has been fouled 67 times, a return bettered only by Wilfried Zaha (71) and Jordan Ayew (69) this season. 2.1 successful dribbles per 90 is also a respectable return.

Gabriel Martinelli only made 21 starts in the Premier League last season, but has become one of the first names on the teamsheet for Arsenal this season. Martinelli is the Gunners’ top scorer in the league with 15 goals and provided five assists, the latter from a total of 57 key passes, which features among the top 10 in the league. He, like Grealish, is also a nuisance for defenders, noted in that only Eberechi Eze (59) has completed more dribbles than Martinelli (56) this season. Additionally, the Brazilian's 76 shots at the time of writing, which means he has returned a conversion rate of 19.7%, the fourth best of those to have mustered 60 or more shots this season.

This will be an intriguing contest between two of the best tacticians in the Premier League, but in the end this game may be won by a single moment of brilliance, potentially from either Grealish or Martinelli.

Score prediction: Manchester City 3-1 Arsenal

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