**Former Blackburn Rovers and Tottenham goalkeeper Brad Friedel is expecting Man City to “catch Arsenal” in the final couple of months of the season.**
[**Pep Guardiola**](https://mancitynews.com/man-city-news-pep-guardiola-title-verdict/)‘s side won 5-4 against Fulham on Tuesday night, moving them to within 2 points of the Gunners. Friedel says the current leaders are top of the table on merit, but he thinks they could end up falling away by March or April:
“I think Man City will catch Arsenal. I think Arsenal are the best team right now, I think they play the best football.”
“But I think when it gets to March and April, and they’re still going in Europe and the FA Cup, if they get one or two of the wrong injuries.”
“Man City has already fallen down, they’re on the mend, they’ve had their psychological dip, and I think they’re going to start coming up.”
City still need to prove themselves
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While the Cityzens have shown they are strong finishers in previous campaigns, it is difficult to compare this team with previous ones due to the number of new signings.
It must be said that this current incarnation looks brittle. They almost blew a 5-1 lead at Craven Cottage, leaving Guardiola at a loss to explain the collapse.
If they start to put a run of wins together over the coming weeks, then Friedel’s prediction is likelier to happen.
Do City or Arsenal have the easier run-in?
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Guardiola’s team play Chelsea away from home in their first match in April before facing Arsenal at home in a potential title decider.
Their last five games are against Burnley (a), Everton (a), Brentford (h), Bournemouth (a) and Aston Villa (h).
The Gunners, meanwhile, host Bournemouth at the Emirates before their trip to the Etihad Stadium. Their last five fixtures will be versus Newcastle (h), Fulham (h), West Ham (a), Burnley (h) and Crystal Palace (a). Neither team have a particularly easy run of games.
[**Read more about the Man City First Team Squad for 2025/26 here**](https://mancitynews.com/manchester-city-first-team-squad/)