Arsenal vs Manchester City: TV channel, live stream, team news & prediction

Arsenal host league leaders Manchester City in the first Premier League match of 2022 on Saturday lunchtime.

The Gunners were on the end of a flattering 5-0 mauling when they faced City away from home in their third game of the season. However, only one side in England's top flight has accrued more points than Arsenal (35) since that hazy August rout - though that team happens to be Manchester City (44).

Here's all you need to know about the upcoming reunion.

When is kick off? Saturday 1 January, 12:30 (GMT)Where is the match being played? Emirates StadiumTV channel/live stream? BT Sport (UK), UNIVERSO (US), DAZN (Canada)Highlights? BT Sport/Sky Sports Football YouTube, Match of the Day (10.45pm - BBC One)Referee? Stuart AttwellVAR? Jarred Gillett

? Mikel Arteta will miss our match against Manchester City on New Year’s Day, after testing positive for COVID-19

— Arsenal (@Arsenal) December 29, 2021

Arsenal's most notable absentee for City's arrival will no longer be the banished captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (assuming his exile continues) after manager Mikel Arteta tested positive for Covid-19.

Elsewhere, the spread of the virus within Arsenal's squad has been chiefly restricted to the team's right-backs, with all three of Calum Chambers, Takehiro Tomiyasu and Cedric Soares set to be sidelined. These absences may force Ben White back into the wide role he fulfilled against Norwich City.

The more natural full-back Sead Kolasinac is still some way short of returning to bolster Arsenal's options on the other side of defence.

You can read Arsenal's predicted lineup here.

The ???? ?#ManCity pic.twitter.com/a5IwP0Tedn

— Manchester City (@ManCity) December 28, 2021

Rodri missed his second game on the spin as City laboured to victory against Brentford on Wednesday evening. The English defensive duo of Kyle Walker and John Stones both had their absences extended though the latter may well be on the verge of a return to the squad at least.

You can read Man City's predicted lineup here.

Across more than 200 competitive meetings, Arsenal come out on top with 98 victories (D45 L61). However, the Gunners have endured a particularly dire run against Pep Guardiola's side in recent years.

Arsenal come into the contest on a sequence of nine consecutive league defeats to City, the longest losing run the club has ever recorded against the same side in more than a century of top-flight football.

? Working towards 2022

?London Colney pic.twitter.com/eYRgrWg2KI

— Arsenal (@Arsenal) December 29, 2021

While Arsenal bounce into the match buoyed by five straight victories across all competitions and sitting in the lofty reaches of fourth place, their season has been a story of beating the division's strugglers and imploding against the elite.

Manchester City - who are on a run of ten consecutive Premier League wins themselves - emphatically top the latter category. A crumb of optimism for the Gunners is that Guardiola's side have been afforded half the rest time of their hosts after the postponement of Arsenal's game against Wolves.

However, the league leaders are still comfortable favourites in a match Arsenal can take positives from if they avoid a humbling.

Prediction: Arsenal 1-3 Manchester City