Crunch Tie At Etihad As Man City Battle Arsenal

Arsenal’s Premier League title credentials will be given a major test when they travel to Manchester City on Saturday.

City have made the Etihad Stadium a fortress this season, winning all seven home games in the top flight and scoring 29 goals in the process.

Manuel Pellegrini’s side have also only conceded twice at home in the Premier League and come into the game on the back of a stunning 3-2 win at Bayern Munich in the UEFA Champions League.

Arsenal are five points clear at the top of the Premier League, though, and that advantage would have been even bigger if Everton winger Gerard Deulofeu had not popped up with a late equaliser at the Emirates Stadium last Sunday.

Arsene Wenger’s charges suffered their first loss in seven games when Napoli beat them 2-0 in midweek, but they still qualified for the last 16 of the Champions League for the 14th season in a row.

The Londoners’ reverse in Italy caused them to drop to second behind Borussia Dortmund in Group F, meaning they will face one of Barcelona, Real Madrid, Bayern, Atletico Madrid or Paris Saint-Germain in the first knockout round.

But Wenger has urged his players to put that disappointment behind them and concentrate on the race for the Premier League title.

“We have done our job now we will give absolutely everything on Saturday morning (at City),” said the Frenchman. “We will see what comes out of the draw and will assess that in February, because a lot can change on both sides, on us and the team we play against, so we need to put that to the back of our minds now and focus on the championship.”

Arsenal defender Per Mertesacker has challenged his team to use Saturday’s crunch clash at Manchester City to prove they can cope with the pressure of the Premier League title race.

England midfielder James Milner concedes this weekend’s match will have a major influence on City’s hopes of regaining the title they won in 2012.

“With the gap Arsenal have at the top, if they win or we win, things are going to look very different, so it is important we get the victory,” Milner said.