You can usually judge the health of a league by its biggest rivalry. Think AC Milan v Napoli in the late 1980s, Man Utd v Arsenal at the turn of the century and Barcelona v Real Madrid when Pep and Jose were in charge. Manchester City v Arsenal isn’t quite in that category, probably never will be, but it would make a worthy Champions League final and that’s a very good starting point for any football-based ding-dong.

This is season three of a rivalry that began when Arsenal knocked Liverpool off the perch reserved for City’s biggest challengers. City gave Arsenal a brutal introduction to life at the highest level, belting them home and away in 2022-23, but last season the only City player to score against Arsenal was Cole Palmer in the Community Shield.

Continue reading...