Arsenal head into their Premier League fixture with Manchester City on Saturday evening holding a five-point advantage over their hosts in the standings.
Although the home side have a game in hand on the Gunners, the North Londoners can put significant distance between them in the table with maximum points.
However, Arsenal have lost their last six Premier League meetings with Man City, shipping three goals in five of those six games.
Mikel Arteta's side must avoid defeat in the North-West to avoid equalling their longest losing streak against one opponent in the league, a record which was set with seven successive setbacks versus Ipswich Town between 1974 and 1977.
Arsenal's only away victory against City in their last nine attempts came in January 2015 with Santi Cazorla and Olivier Giroud getting on the scoresheet in a 2-0 victory.
Nevertheless, Arsenal did emerge victorious in the most recent competitive fixture between the two sides, which was their FA Cup semi-final in July.
Darren Plant
