Arsenal have been handed a serious lift in their pursuit of a first Premier League title since 2003-04, with a Manchester City player admitting it will be ‘impossible’ to catch them if one thing occurs.
Arsenal are enjoying a fantastic campaign, sitting top of the Premier League table with a five-point lead on second-placed City. Plus, they have a game in hand on Pep Guardiola’s side, so that gap could soon reach eight points.
The Gunners are doing well in Europe, too. They convincingly won Europa League Group A and have therefore avoided a knockout round play-off.
Mikel Arteta winning the league with Arsenal at City’s expense would be an intriguing turn of events. After all, he worked under Guardiola between July 2016 and December 2019 as City assistant manager.
City allowed Arteta to fly the nest over three years ago and he could now get to England’s biggest prize ahead of them.
Arsenal are seemingly causing City some problems in the dressing room. During a recent interview with DAZN, Citizens midfielder Rodri has issued a rather defeatist claim about his team potentially catching Arsenal.
Rodri says it will be ‘impossible’ for City to get ahead of Arteta’s men if they keep up their impressive form.
“Every year it’s more complicated. The level of this league is tremendous and you have to win it with almost 90-odd points,” the 26-year-old said (via Notimerica).
Man City player admits Arsenal are ‘impressive’
“We are calm, we know that there is a lot left and we are going in the right direction. It is true that Arsenal have had an impressive first half of the season.
“Obviously, if they maintain that level and are capable of doing the same in the second half, it will be impossible.”
City’s off-the-field issues may impact their hunt for another league crown, too. Reports claim there is unrest among the squad and several players have fallen out with Guardiola.
Joao Cancelo was in this group of unhappy stars. This explains why he left the Etihad for Bayern Munich late in the January transfer window.
And City may also be given a transfer ban or points deduction. The Premier League has charged them with over 100 breaches of Financial Fair Play rules.
City are confident they will fight off the allegations and are actually planning a summer swoop for a Chelsea man. However, the controversy will do little to help the senior squad as they look to rein in that Arsenal lead.
Meanwhile, Arsenal have made contact over the potential signing of a Barcelona attacker, according to reports.