Haaland has a bit of history with Arsenal, he clashed with Gabriel Magalhaes after the late equaliser from John Stones when these sides last met back in September, memorably throwing the ball at the Brazilians’ head. He then proceeded to argue with Mikel Arteta after the full-time whistle, looking really fired up.

During his 90 minutes, Haaland racked up 3 fouls in total. Despite his average of just 0.68 fouls per 90 in all competitions this season, Haaland has generally seen an uptick in fouls in more competitive games, landing this selection recently with 1 foul against Chelsea, and 3 fouls against PSG in the Champions League.

In 5 head-to-head league matches against Arsenal, Haaland has landed this selection in 3, averaging 1.67 fouls per game.

Gabriel has a tendency to draw soft fouls from his opposing striker, which explains his record of 0.81 fouls drawn per 90, landing this selection in 8 out of his last 12 games in all competitions.

The Brazilian drew 1 foul in the reverse fixture this season, and was also fouled once when these sides last met at the Emirates. He will be up against Haaland, so an intense physical battle is expected between those two once again.

Expect them to contest ample duels throughout the match, especially as Man City have a tendency to play long at times – it’s a matchup to keep an eye on.

Man City were far from watertight against Club Brugge midweek, who were readily able to exploit gaps in midfield. That has been a trend all season for Pep Guardiola’s side, who have been far less convincing defensively. Belgian side Club Brugge were able to accumulate 12 shots in total, amounting to 1.17 xG. Arsenal are a much more potent attacking force, and ought to exploit such weaknesses on the break.

Havertz has a knack for popping up in great scoring positions, as he did for Chelsea in the Champions League final against Man City in 2021. The German has managed 10 goals at the Emirates this season in all competitions, including back-to-back goals in his last 2 home matches.

Michael Oliver was kept busy in the reverse fixture, as he dished out 7 yellow cards and a red. Leandro Trossard was sent off just before half-time for a second bookable offence. Pep Guardiola also found himself in the book, in what was a feisty affair. The Gunners landed this bet in both head-to-head games last season, too. They picked up exactly 2 bookings in both league meetings.

Arsenal are averaging 2.17 cards per game at the Emirates in the league this season, only failing to land this bet against Ipswich, Everton, Man United and Southampton. These were games where Arsenal were the dominant side, and had very little defending to do. In more evenly contested games against the likes of Aston Villa, Liverpool and Spurs, this selection landed.

After his fantastic performance midweek, which saw Savinho get on the scoresheet despite being brought on at half-time, the Brazilian is set to reclaim his starting position on the flank.

Savinho has managed 2 or more shots in each of his last 15 straight games for Man City when playing at least 45 mins. In total, he is averaging 3.21 shots per 90 this season – only Haaland and Foden have a higher total.
He also landed this bet in the reverse fixture, registering 2 shots at the Etihad.

Prior to that, he had 2 shots against PSG in the Champions League before being substituted at half-time. Minutes are a concern for backing Savinho, but we are covered by the SuperSub rule by taking this with PaddyPower

With 5 goals in his last five league games, Erling Haaland will have his sights set on overtaking Mo Salah in the Premier League Golden Boot race. As it stands, the Egyptian tops the charts with 19 goals, with Haaland breathing down his neck on 18.

The Norwegian had 6 efforts in the reverse fixture against Arsenal, with 5 of those on target, although that was heavily impacted by the red card. However, Haaland notched the opening goal of that game after just 9 minutes, well before any controversy.

Despite being carded just twice all season, Haaland was lucky to escape a booking in that game for his rough challenges and antics after the equaliser.

In bigger games like this, Mikel Arteta does not shy away from deploying a deep block, emphasising defensive pragmatism to keep the game low-scoring. Such tactics leave the Gunners reliant on set-pieces for the majority of their chance creation, which makes Gabriel a target.

That was particularly evident when these sides met earlier in the season, as Gabriel accounted for 2 of Arsenals’ 5 shots in total. That includes getting on the scoresheet. Man City really struggled to match the physicality of Gabriel, which is an issue set to persist with Ruben Dias ruled out. If the Gunners aim to exploit such an edge once more, Gabriel remains a player to target.

Matheus Nunes has committed the most fouls for the Citizens this season, averaging 1.55 per 90. That average rises slightly to 1.64 when playing on the road, as the Portuguese international has landed this bet in 9 out of 10 away games in all competitions.

In recent weeks, he appeared in a deeper right back role, which has seen him take on a greater defensive responsibility. He will likely find duels against Leandro Trossard on the flank, who is averaging 1.29 fouls drawn per 90.

Myles Lewis-Skelly will also be pushing to start, after seeing his red card rescinded for a challenge against Wolves. The 18-year-old is averaging 3.16 fouls drawn per 90, and has a tendency to go down softly under contact, presenting Nunes with an excellent matchup to target fouls.