Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has threatened to ‘murder’ any of his players who are fearful of their Premier League title clash with Manchester City.

The Gunners travel to the Etihad Stadium on Wednesday night sitting five points clear of their hosts at the top of the table, though having played two games more and with arguably a harder run-in.

Arteta’s men head north having drawn their last three games, losing a considerable amount of momentum at the worst possible time.

The Spaniard was asked at his pre-match press conference if it was possible that his players could be intimidated by such a huge occasion.

“No. And if they do, I will just say: ‘I will kill them.’ And I don’t want that at all,” Arteta replied.

“Yeah, it’s going to be a tough night and challenge but the opportunity is incredible for us. We knew from the beginning, if you want to win a Premier League, you have to go to Spurs and beat them. You have to go to Chelsea and you have to beat them. You have to go away from home and win. This is what we’ve been doing. This is why we’re here.

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“Now you have to go to City and you have to beat them. If you want to be champions you have to win those matches. It’s as simple as that.”

Arsenal’s terrible record vs Man City

Arsenal have beaten Man City just twice since Pep Guardiola moved to England, and never in the Premier League.

Man City have won seven games in a row against the Gunners since their last defeat to Arteta’s side, with a couple of those victories garnering considerable winning margins.

Date Score Competition
17/10/2020 Man City 1-0 Arsenal Premier League
22/12/2020 Arsenal 1-4 Man City League Cup
21/2/2021 Arsenal 0-1 Man City Premier League
28/8/2021 Man City 5-0 Arsenal Premier League
1/1/2022 Arsenal 1-2 Man City Premier League
27/1/2023 Man City 1-0 Arsenal FA Cup
15/2/2023 Arsenal 1-3 Man City Premier League