This will be the first chance to watch Enzo Maresca in action as new City boss. How will their new-look midfield fare vs the defending PL champions?
Best bets for Arsenal vs Manchester City
- Manchester City/Draw and under 3.5 goals at odds of 2.05 with 10bet
- Omar Marmoush anytime goalscorer at odds of 3.75 with 10bet
- Draw (1st Half) at odds of 2.20 with 10bet
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Our analysis: Form of both teams
- Score prediction: Arsenal 1-2 Manchester City
- Goalscorers prediction: Arsenal: Gyökeres - Manchester City: Marmoush, Semenyo
English football's season opener returns to Cardiff for the first time since 2006. Premier League champions Arsenal face FA Cup holders Manchester City at the Principality Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
Arsenal's build-up has been uneven. A 4-1 win over Girona was followed by defeats to Real Betis and Borussia Dortmund, before a 1-1 draw with Como was settled on penalties.
Gunners boss Mikel Arteta is without William Saliba and Jurrien Timber, who both face extended layoffs. Meanwhile, Rice and Saka are not expected to feature after extra rest. Bruno Guimarães, Christos Tzolis and Piero Hincapié have travelled to south Wales.
City are sharper at the time of writing. Enzo Maresca’s first competitive match in charge comes after an Asian tour. City suffered a penalty shootout defeat to Inter Milan but recorded comfortable victories over the K-League All-Stars and Atlético Madrid.
Haaland, Doku, Guéhi, O'Reilly, Cherki and record signing Elliot Anderson only returned to training on Wednesday. Rodri remains absent after back surgery, with Grealish still building fitness.
Probable lineups for Arsenal vs Manchester City
Arsenal expected lineup: Raya, White, Mosquera, Gabriel, Calafiori, Zubimendi, Guimarães, Ødegaard, Madueke, Gyökeres, Martinelli
Manchester City expected lineup: Donnarumma, Nunes, Dias, Gvardiol, O'Reilly, Reijnders, Anderson, Semenyo, Foden, Doku, Marmoush
Backing City to avoid defeat and a cagey Cardiff contest
Arsenal arrive in Cardiff with their defence stripped back. Saliba and Timber both face extended spells out. This leaves Gabriel to marshal a makeshift back line alongside Mosquera or Hincapié.
That could leave Arsenal vulnerable against a City attack featuring Haaland, Marmoush, Doku and Antoine Semenyo. The latter has been one of the standout performers of Maresca’s pre-season.
However, neither manager wants a chaotic afternoon a week before their league opener. Six of the last ten Community Shields have gone to penalties.
Backing City to avoid defeat inside 90 minutes with the goals capped at three covers both a cagey scoreline and a potential shootout. This appears to be the most obvious value play from our trio of Arsenal vs Manchester City predictions.
- Arsenal vs Manchester City Bet 1: Manchester City/Draw and under 3.5 goals at odds of 2.05 with 10bet
Marmoush to build on strong Seoul showing
Omar Marmoush arrives in better form than almost anyone in this fixture. He scored twice in City's 3-1 win over Atlético Madrid in Seoul.
The timing is important. Erling Haaland only rejoined group training on Wednesday after an extended post-World Cup break. Hence, a start is far from guaranteed, and a bench role is entirely plausible.
That leaves Marmoush as the obvious beneficiary, whether he leads the line from the first whistle or attacks tiring legs later on. Marmoush has been linked with a summer move, so the Egyptian will be keen to impress. Against a patched-up Arsenal back four, a 26.67% probability of Marmoush scoring at any point looks generous.
- Arsenal vs Manchester City Bet 2: Omar Marmoush anytime goalscorer at odds of 3.75 with 10bet
Slow burner in the opening 45
Expect a slow burn in Cardiff. Neither Arteta nor Maresca want to expose a weakness early against the club they expect to be their main title rival.
Cagey openings are the norm in this fixture. Fitness reinforces the case. Haaland, Doku, Guéhi and Cherki only resumed group training on Wednesday, while Rice and Saka are not expected to feature for Arsenal at all.
Consequently, neither side is expected to start at full intensity. A tight, probing first 45 minutes finishing level looks like a sensible betting route at a probability of just over 45%.
- Arsenal vs Manchester City Bet 3: Draw (1st Half) at odds of 2.20 with 10bet