Ramsey or Toure: Which talisman could dominate on Saturday?
Well, here is one of the blockbusters of the Premier League after the international break. Arsenal host Champions Manchester City at the Emirates which would be the second time the Gunners face the Citizens after their win in the Community Shield. Arsenal have added Danny Welbeck to their roster and is likely to play a huge role in the absence of Giroud, while Manchester City’s last major buy was Eliaquim Mangala who is yet to feature in the Premier League.
But the talk is of talismanic players and without a shadow of doubt, Arsenal’s talisman is their in-form Welsh engine Aaron Ramsey who has shown alarming consistency in his performances since last season. Manchester City’s main hero was and is the big man Yaya Toure, who was once tried by Arsenal. Ramsey and Yaya would go head to head in Saturday’s early kick off and we’ll have to see who comes out on top!
Arsenal are a strong force at home.
The Gunners lost the plot away from home last season, but at home, their form has been impressive. They are very tough to beat and the huge Emirates Stadium does bully the opposition team. With the home crowd backing the Gunners heavily against their title rivals, Manchester City are going to find it tough to dominate against Arsenal.
Secondly, Arsenal themselves are very confident at home. Their squad is relatively fresh and have better depth in midfield than last time. Aaron Ramsey is definitely going to be much more relaxed than Yaya Toure.
Last time, Manchester City drew at Arsenal, where Arsenal looked like a team that could well be champions. So, going by the logic that football is very much a team sport, Aaron Ramsey will be expected to dominate more on his home ground.
Manchester City and Arsenal have been in indifferent form.
Both the teams have been in rather indifferent form early on in the season. While Arsenal struggled against Everton and Leicester, Man City suffered a shock loss at the hands of Stoke City, at Etihad. Both of the teams are facing their first real challenge (although Arsenal did face a tough Everton side at Goodison), which means they both have an opportunity to shine. Under pressure, both stars we are considering have a lot to contribute. But, going by the sheer quality of players around Toure, general expectation around the Manchester side is that they’re still the stronger team in the battle.
The form of both teams is weaker than they would’ve liked, but Man City do have a rhythm in their play which they have established despite their odd loss against Stoke.
Will Ramsey be marked?
Of all courses, yes! Ramsey is likely to be marked heavily by either Fernando (if he’s fit) or Fernandinho. These are two very capable defensive midfielders and it can be really hard for Ramsey to make unchecked runs. It would be even tougher if Fernando plays. Fernando is that type of player who loves doing the dirty work of man marking and defending. With Man City, the case is always about balance. Yaya Toure, though playing more attack minded, is still a huge guy and he himself is a pretty handy defensive player. He would have absolutely no issues marking Ozil if the German is struggling.
On the other hand, Arsenal really need to counter Yaya’s effect. They may have to throw in young Chambers in defensive midfield and there is no guarantee that he won’t be bullied by Yaya Toure. Arsenal’s lack of a typical defensive midfielder is bound to hurt them if Yaya decides to steamroll them. They need someone like Chelsea’s Matic who matched Yaya neck to neck on his debut.
The Final Verdict: Yaya Toure
Aaron Ramsey is in much better form than Yaya Toure and is playing at home, which adds to his and his team’s advantage. But, tactically speaking, Arsenal don’t have measures to really deal with Yaya’s power in midfield. Nor is Wenger going to bend his tactics and play narrow or defensive football just to etch out results. Thus, it is likely that Manchester City’s individual man markers in double pivot will get the better of Ramsey. But, yes here is the wildcard- If German star Mesut Ozil decides to take matters into his own hands, he can be one hell of a menace in midfield and can relieve Ramsey, in which case, Ramsey will be likely to score goals. But, as of now, considering Ozil’s form to be rather average, the verdict would be Yaya Toure.
Team News
As revealed by the club’s official website, Mesut Ozil and Mikel Arteta has resumed first team training and are likely to be involved tomorrow. The German missed his country’s International games as he had a sprain in his ankle following a knock that he picked up against Leicester City. However, he has recovered in time to face City and club captain Mikel Arteta resumes training after a month on the sidelines.
Arsene Wenger will be having his entire squad for the game with the exception of Theo Walcott and Olivier Giroud. It will be interesting to see if he decides to use new signing Danny Welbeck right away or decides to start him from the bench giving Yaya Sanogo another chance to lead the attack.
For City, Manuel Pellegrini has worries over the fitness of in-form striker Stevan Jovetic, who after impressing at the start of the season is back on the treatement table. New signing Fernando is also a major doubt as he limped of agianst Stoke City last week and is yet to fully recover.
Possible Starting Lineups:
Arsenal: Szczesny; Debuchy, Koscielny, Mertesacker, Monreal; Arteta, Flamini; Cazorla, Ozil, Sanchez; Welbeck
Man City: Hart; Sagna, Demichelis, Kompany, Kolarov; Silva, Toure, Fernandinho, Nasri; Aguero, Dzeko
Prediction:
1-2 win for the visitors.
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