EPL Soccer: Manchester City vs. Arsenal:
Week 5 of the English Premier League concludes on Sunday, September 22, with a marquee matchup between Manchester City and Arsenal, the two teams atop the table, and one of Nigel Seeley’s EPL best bets.
How to Watch Manchester City vs. Arsenal
Where: USA
When: Sunday 11:30 a.m. ET
Manchester City vs. Arsenal Odds
Manchester City -128 // Arsenal +364
Total: 2.5 (-114/-109)
My EPL best bets of the weekend remain unbeaten after the push on Aston Villa vs. Everton, and you would have noticed they all have a similar theme in that they don’t come from the highest-profile game on the card. Well, that changes this week and the very rare occasion where the box office fixture is carrying my largest stake. Usually there is no value in the “big game” but this weekend I think there is and lots of it with Under 2.5 goals available at -117.
This is a huge match between the two main rivals for the title in the EPL. With Liverpool in a transition season, one of either Manchester City or Arsenal will be lifting the trophy come May. While the gap to the rest widens, it is wafer thin between these two sides, with massive amounts of respect held between Pep Guardiola and Mikel Arteta.
We can pitch this as the best attack versus the best defence, the best striker on the planet in Haaland up against its best defender in William Saliba. That presents a distinct possibility of the two teams canceling each other out.
Manchester City come into this one off the back of a goalless draw at home to Inter Milan in the Champions League, while at the time of writing, Arsenal are yet to complete their European fixture against Atalanta.
Last weekend, the Gunners had to make do without Martin Ødegaard and will have to do so for several more weeks due to the significant damage to his ankle. They overcame that blow and that of Declan Rice’s suspension to beat North London rivals Tottenham. Having Rice back for this clash is a massive boost.
Mikel Arteta got his tactics absolutely spot on against Spurs tweaking his formation and nullifying any threat from their opponent. He will use that template and look to repeat the trick here against the champions whose off-field problems rumble on with the case of answering 130 alleged breaches of financial fair play having got underway this week.
On the pitch, both meetings were very tight last season, with this clash ending in a 0-0 draw after it was 1-0 to the Arsenal at the Emirates. Those results followed a 1-1 draw (after 90 minutes) in the Community Shield season curtain raiser.
This season, more than ever, these two are clearly the title contenders in a battle that will go down to the wire. Matches against each other could determine the destination of the trophy. That may sound extreme just five matches into the new season, but when you look across the fixtures, it is hard to see where either will drop too many points.
Putting that into context in 2024, Manchester City have played 23 EPL games, have won 20 and drawn three (Chelsea, Liverpool and Arsenal). Arsenal have played 22, won 19, drawn two and lost one with the defeat coming against Aston Villa who they have already played and beaten this term.
As a result, we should get a very tight and competitive game on Sunday where no side will want to give an inch to their rival. Added to the complexities of Champions League commitments in the midweek leading up to this fixture, with player injury or fatigue, it all points towards Under 2.5 goals.
EPL Best Bet: Manchester City vs. Arsenal – Under 2.5 goals at -117.
