Former Arsenal defender William Gallas believes Mikel Arteta’s men need to beat Manchester City this weekend if they are to establish themselves as title contenders.
Arsenal pushed City hard for the title last season but ultimately fell away in the final third of the campaign.
Guardiola guided City to a treble and they are once again in charge of the race for the league trophy, but Arsenal remain strong contenders to challenge them.
Gallas, who played for Arsenal and Chelsea, amongst others, told Gambling Zone that Arsenal had to win this weekend.
He said: “There is no choice. If Arsenal want to be taken seriously by Manchester City, if they want to worry City, they have to win. This is a great opportunity for Arsenal. This is a great opportunity to show that they have learned from last season. Last season Arsenal finished second. To improve, they have to finish first this season.
“I don’t think that Arsenal will be champions (this season). I’m not really that worried about Arsenal when they play against the biggest teams – we know they can hurt anyone. The problem is that we have to compare them to last season. They dropped too many points making silly mistakes. From what we’ve seen of Arsenal so far this season, it doesn’t look like they have improved. Last season, they beat Tottenham home and away.
“They have already dropped two points against Tottenham this season. That is why they need to demonstrate they can handle the big occasion, show some balls and beat Manchester City on Sunday. They need to show Manchester City that this season, things will be different.”