Pep Guardiola gives Manchester City squad two days off before monumental Arsenal clash

Pep Guardiola gives Manchester City squad two days off before monumental Arsenal clash

• City closed gap to Arsenal to six points with 3-0 win at Chelsea on Sunday
• Pep Guardiola’s side face visit from Premier League leaders this weekend
• Guardiola has handed his squad two days off after light training on Monday

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has given his players two days off ahead of Sunday’s Premier League battle with Arsenal at the Etihad Stadium.

The Blues handed the Gunners a major title blow by capitalising on their 2-1 defeat to Bournemouth with a dominant 3-0 win over Chelsea at Stamford Bridge to cut the gap to the top of the Premier League table to six points.

City retain a game in hand over Mikel Arteta‘s men, who have midweek UEFA Champions League commitments and suffered defeat in the Carabao Cup final against Guardiola’s side at Wembley in March.

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Momentum is with second-placed Manchester City in the build-up to Sunday’s fixture and Guardiola will be desperate to build on his side’s rich vein of form – underpinned by a trip of consecutive triumphs over Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea.

Guardiola gives Man City players two days off

Paul Hirst of Times Sport has reported that Guardiola has given his squad two days off after a light recovery session at the club’s training facilities on Monday.

City made a happy journey back to the north-west from west London at the weekend after a scintillating second-half performance downed Liam Rosenior and Chelsea, with goals from Nico O’Reilly, Marc Guehi and Jeremy Doku making the difference.

Confidence is high in the camp after back-to-back draws against Nottingham Forest and West Ham in March saw Guardiola and co lose significant ground in the title race, though Arsenal have been far from perfect and are enduring a difficult run of form.

Guardiola admitted in a press conference after Sunday’s win that he would rather be in Arsenal’s position and still be fighting in Europe, with City losing to Real Madrid in the Round of 16 stage of the UEFA Champions League over two legs last month.

The Catalan has gone so far to say that City must be perfect between now and the end of the Premier League campaign to stand any chance of winning a seventh league title – and the weekend win over Chelsea was definitely a step in the right direction, particularly given Arsenal had the chance to extend their lead to 12 points against Bournemouth.

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Guardiola got his team selection spot on at Stamford Bridge and is unlikely to make many changes to the starting XI when Arteta and Arsenal visit the Etihad Stadium on Sunday.

Ruben Dias missed the trip to London with a hamstring injury he sustained in the days leading to the Carabao Cup final, with John Stones also not fully fit after suffering a calf injury in the recent international break.

Mateo Kovacic came off the bench against his former club at the weekend and is expected to be involved in similar capacity against Arsenal, though his compatriot Josko Gvardiol remains sidelined as he recovers from a right tibial fracture.

There are doubts over O’Reilly’s availability after the England international went off with a hamstring injury in the second-half of City’s 3-0 win over Chelsea, though Guardiola is expected to provide an update on the left-back’s fitness in a press conference on Friday.