Arteta’s Arsenal must navigate fine margins to topple City’s gold standard

O n one level it was same old Arsenal; on another it was something palpably different. Last year was less than 15 hours old when they lost in added time to a snaffled Rodri finish at the Emirates, meaning a first-half lead had been completely overhauled and Manchester City looked bound for the title. They felt the big decisions, such as Gabriel Magalhães’s red card and VAR calls in either penalty area, had gone against them but anyone looking merely at the bare facts would have assumed the wearyingly familiar tendency to shoot themselves in the foot told enough of a tale.

Those watching more closely, including a Covid-stricken Mikel Arteta who had to dial in his team talk from home, would have rejected that as a lazy interpretation. This was not the same: yes, Arsenal had fallen short, but until Gabriel’s departure they had outplayed City. The clinical finish supplied by Bukayo Saka had been the least they deserved in a relentless display of speed and daring. Four months previously a 5-0 defeat at the Etihad had brought the darkest period of Arteta’s managerial career but now only the finest of margins separated his team from the gold standard.

“I think we took a lot of positives from the game,” Arteta said on Tuesday when asked whether it served as a launchpad or, perhaps, a visible justification of his process. “For one reason or another we ended up losing it so the gap was still there for us to improve. Hopefully we’ve gone a little step further and [on Wednesday] we can show that against them.”

The fact they have made that jump is already clear in the Premier League standings, even more so because they are three points clear of City before the latter’s visit. It is also evident in Arsenal’s record against the