GUNNING FOR CONSISTENCY

Arteta wants in-form Arsenal to continue winning momentum against visiting City

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On the day of Arsenal’s English Premier League match against Liverpool in August, the club issued a social media post urging the team to “make a statement”.

They failed to do so, allowing the Reds to strike a psychological blow early in the title race with a1-0 win, sparking criticism of Gunners manager Mikel Arteta for his conservative game plan.

That defeat is in the past now, and Arsenal will hope to make amends and have another chance to show this could be their year when they host Manchester City on Sept 21.

The Gunners head into this match following two straight victories, 2-0 over Athletic Bilbao in the Champions League in midweek and 3-0 over Nottingham Forest last weekend.

Momentum is key for Arteta.

“(They were) two very important wins, very good feeling about the games, and I am preparing for a very big match for Sunday,” he said.

“It is about winning again and creating another good moment for us, to have consistency and we are competing against one of the best teams obviously in the world. So it is good to see our level as well.”

He added that Pep Guardiola’s City should not be underestimated even if they are going through a rough patch.