Manchester City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak has spoken previously of the gamechanging moment for the Blues that Arsenal are desperate for
Manchester City's Spanish manager Pep Guardiola (L) speaks with Manchester City Emirati chairman Khaldoon al-Mubarak (R) on the pitch after the presentation ceremony following the English Premier League football match between Manchester City and Chelsea at the Etihad Stadium in Manchester, north west England, on May 21, 2023. Manchester City won the Premier League for the fifth time in six seasons on Saturday, taking a first step to a possible golden treble of trophies as second-placed Arsenal lost 1-0 at Nottingham Forest. (Photo by Oli SCARFF / AFP) / RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or 'live' services. Online in-match use limited to 120 images. An additional 40 images may be used in extra time. No video emulation. Social media in-match use limited to 120 images. An additional 40 images may be used in extra time. No use in betting publications, games or single club/league/player publications. / (Photo by OLI SCARFF/AFP via Getty Images)
Pep Guardiola and Khaldoon Al Mubarak in 2023 after chasing down Arsenal(Image: )
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There was plenty of sarcasm from Pep Guardiola last Friday as he chewed over the reaction to Manchester City's defeat to Bodo/Glimt in the Champions League. Some took his praise for Arsenal as 'the best team in the world' as genuine and it may well have been, yet the fact he referenced another club in a similar way moments later suggested he was fed up with his team being written off.
"I know the reason why we're struggling now, I know 100 per cent what happened with the team. Try to give a little bit more time and give it," he said. "Will it be enough? I don't know. I know it's a disaster having 13 points in the Champions League but eight teams have 13 points - one of them one of the best in the world - for them it's fine but for us it's a disaster for us. Our standards are so high, guys."
Having started 2026 in second place in the Premier League, three draws and one defeat from four games looked to have scuppered their title challenge. They cannot overtake Arsenal with form like that. However, Arsenal's results have been bang average as well. Defeat at home to Manchester United on Sunday means they are just four points ahead of City, with a trip to the Etihad later in the season still to come.
That boosts City from a general sense of points total, but the Blues will also be encouraged by the fact that Arsenal haven't killed off this title race when they could have done. Dropped points against Liverpool, Nottingham Forest, and now United have all seen the Gunners fail to make their advantage count, with boos at the Emirates at the weekend.
At times this season it has looked like City have been chasing a formidable side but now they know that is not the case. The incredible Chelsea record for goals conceded in a season is intact, as are the City Centurions, and it is currently looking like a tally of under 90 points will win the league.
That is not an extraordinary standard, and Arsenal have the pressure and tension of recent seasons on their case as well as their own fans. They led the way for almost all of the 2022/23 season before being blown away at the last minute by City, left the Etihad in March 2024 happy with a 0-0 draw that ultimately was not enough for them to stop City doing it again, and when Guardiola's side finally collapsed last year it was Liverpool that stepped up to take the crown.
City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak has praised Sergio Aguero many times for 'changing everything' at the club with his 2012 winner against QPR. City played that final game with the weight of a club that were so desperate to break that title drought and it very nearly cost them before the late rescue act started by Edin Dzeko and finished off in the 94th minute.
Interestingly, one of the reasons Al Mubarak will forever be grateful to Aguero for that is that he believes had City lost that title it would have damaged them for future years. In other words, if they don't win the league in 2012 then who knows when they would have done.
That is what Arsenal are currently fighting against, and expectations of City - especially if you are Guardiola looking out - have never been lower for a team that is new and inexperienced compared to previous champions. It will still be an uphill task to win the Premier League, but the incline for City looks more gentle knowing what is waiting for them ahead.