Mikel Arteta has admitted the arrival of Enzo Maresca and a raft of new Premier League managers this season could push Arsenal to another level.
Arteta and Maresca meet for the first time since the Italian took over from Pep Guardiola at the Etihad Stadium, with Sunday's Community Shield in Cardiff set to bring them face to face.
The Arsenal boss backed Chelsea's former manager to do "amazing work" on Friday, with Manchester City now one of nine Premier League clubs under new management this season.
That churn in the dugouts has only strengthened the sense that Arsenal are the strongest favourites to reclaim the Premier League title.
Arteta was determined to sidestep such talk and refused to dwell on Maresca during Friday's press conference, particularly with the Basque manager Xabi Alonso among the fresh faces in the Premier League. The 44-year-old is also yet to face Roberto De Zerbi since his arrival at Tottenham last March.
Arteta said: "Well, the competition will be with a number of managers too, alongside Maresca, and with some of the new managers who have joined the league, who are exceptional too."
He added: "We know this league has a lot of great managers. It is extremely difficult every week to prepare for matches against them. This will raise our level and my level for certain, and we will try to be better."
He continued: "Every club has its strengths. Some clubs because of the many victories they have achieved over the past ten years, some because of their squads, and some because of the money they have spent."
He went on: "We know our strengths, and they are linked to what we have delivered over the past four or five years in a very consistent manner, but we can also be better, and that is what we are focusing on to maintain this consistency."
He added: "I have called the matter stability, but I do not want to be stable, I want to be better and more ambitious. That is what we want."
A late call awaits on Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka. Arteta will assess the England duo's physical condition before deciding whether they feature against Manchester City.
Both returned to training this week after a gruelling World Cup, which followed a successful but demanding 2025-2026 season in which the pair had to manage physical problems.
Summer signings Bruno Guimaraes and Christos Tzolis are gearing up for their first competitive outings in an Arsenal shirt against a City side who won two of three meetings last season, including the League Cup final at Wembley.
Asked whether Manchester City would remain Arsenal's biggest rival for the title despite Guardiola's exit, Arteta replied: "We will have a lot of competitors."
He went on: "When looking at the squads, the managers, and the clubs they belong to, but we know that."
Arteta concluded: "We need to focus on ourselves and make sure we get the maximum out of all the resources we have, to give ourselves the best possible chance. And after that, day by day, it will be a very long journey."