For Manchester City, there could well be more than points at stake this evening. Victory would cement their place as title favourites in the minds of many, despite some pretty unconvincing performances of late, but a defeat, particularly a comprehensive one, may well tilt the balance in the favour of Arsenal. As mentioned earlier, questions still remain over the Gunners' mentality, but if they can beat a team expected to be their main rivals here then people may start taking them very seriously indeed.

Handing over the psychological edge would not be ideal for Manuel Pellegrini's side, although they do have a slight advantage in that they have already been there and done it, winning two titles in recent years, whereas Arsenal's last success came with the Invincibles back in 2004. Interestingly, following the departure of Jose Mourinho, Arsene Wenger and Pellegrini are the only two active managers still in England to have won the Premier League title before.

Whether or not Pellegrini will still belong to that club at the start of next season has been a topic of much debate recently, even before Pep Guardiola confirmed that he will be leaving Bayern Munich at the end of the season. A number of teams are understood to be interested in the Spaniard, but City are considered among the front-runners having had a long-standing interest in him. As a result, Pellegrini has been forced to put up with a barrage of questions about the subject, but in fairness to the Chilean he has fielded them all well, even suggesting that he would be happy to see Guardiola get the job at some time in the future as it would be good for the club. If City can get him then Pellegrini's day would surely be numbered, but success in any of the four competitions that they are still in may make that decision a little bit harder.

TEAM NEWS: The teams are in! The big news comes from the City camp as Sergio Aguero returns from a heel in time for this one, but there is no place for Alexis Sanchez in the Arsenal side. Aguero's return is one of four changes for the visitors, including Sterling dropping to the bench and Kevin De Bruyne coming back in, wherewas the hosts are unchanged from last time out. Full team news for both sides coming right up...

ARSENAL STARTING XI: Cech; Bellerin, Mertesacker, Koscielny, Monreal; Ramsey, Flamini, Walcott, Ozil, Campbell; Giroud

ARSENAL SUBS: Ospina, Chambers, Gabriel, Reine-Adelaide, Gibbs. Iwobi, Oxlade-Chamberlain

MAN CITY STARTING XI: Hart; Sagna, Otamendi, Mangala, Kolarov; Fernandinho, Toure, Delph, De Bruyne, Silva; Aguero

MAN CITY SUBS: Caballero, Demichelis, Clichy, Navas, Sterling, Iheanacho, Bony

What can we make of those two teams, then? Well, the big question mark over the home side was whether or not Alexis Sanchez would be fit in time, but his absence from the squad altogether suggests that he may still be a doubt for Boxing Day too. Wenger was criticised for playing the Chilean when he picked up a hamstring injury against Norwich following a taxing international break, and this is now the fourth game that he would have missed through that injury. He joins the likes of Arteta, Wilshere, Rosicky, Welbeck, Cazorla and Coquelin all on the sidelines for the Gunners.

Fortunately, the form of Olivier Giroud has meant that Sanchez's absence has barely been felt so far. The Frenchman has scored five goals in his last three games to take him to 14 for the season in all competitions, 11 of which have come in his last 13 outings. In terms of solely the Premier League he has scored in eight of his last 12 appearances and notched seven goals in his last 10. He also has a decent record against City having scored twice in his last three games against Manuel Pellegrini's men.

He has been ably backed up by Mesut Ozil too, with the German back to his very best this season. He already has a phenomenal 13 assists to his name in the league this season, six more than anyone else in the top flight, and coupled with his two goals he has had a direct hand in 15 goals in as many games this term. Compare that to his record of contributing to nine goals (five assists, four goals) in 22 league appearances last season and the improvement is clear to see.

Others are in fine form for the Gunners too, with Ramsey having contributed two goals and assist in his last two matches following his recent return from injury, while Flamini has so far slotted back into the defensive midfield position well, when many thought that the injury to Coquelin could really hurt the Gunners. At the back, it could be a special day for Petr Cech, who needs just one more clean sheet to become the outright record holder for goalkeepers in Premier League history having equalled David James's tally of 169 shutouts against Aston Villa.

A clean sheet is no given up against the likes of Sergio Aguero, though, and the Argentine's return to the side is an early Christmas present for Manuel Pellegrini. Aguero has scored seven goals in nine Premier League starts this season, including five in one match, and after missing the last four games he is deemed fit enough to start once again here. It has been another injury-plagued season for the striker, though, and keeping him fit could well be the difference between City winning the title and missing out on it.

City also welcome Kevin De Bruyne back into the fold after he missed out against Swansea last Saturday due to fatigue, and interestingly both Navas and Sterling drop to the bench as a result. Pellegrini appears to be going with a slightly different formation today, perhaps playing three up front, with De Bruyne and Silva wide and Aguero through the middle. The number 10 role tends to bring the best out of Silva, however, so Pellegrini may be thinking of something different, perhaps even bringing Yaya Toure up into a more advanced position to have more of an impact in the final third. Delph is the other new man in midfield.

The fourth change comes at left-back, where Gael Clichy drops to the bench to be replaced by Kolarov, who also missed out against Swansea. Once again the notable absentee from defence is captain Vincent Kompany, however, with the Belgian still sidelined due to a calf problem. In the 15 games that Kompany has missed for City already this season, they have failed to keep a single clean sheet and average 1.6 goals conceded per game, whereas in the nine games that he has played, City have kept seven clean sheets and concede an average of just 0.44 goals per game. His importance to the side can't really be overstated.

That defensive record has seen Man City conceded more goals than anyone else in the top seven besides Leicester, which is not a stat that we are too accustomed to seeing with City in recent years. They have failed to keep a clean sheet in their last seven games in all competitions, since a goalless draw against Aston Villa in November, while they have only kept two in their last 20 outings. Both of those were in 0-0 draws too, meaning that they have not kept a clean sheet and won the match since a 1-0 win over Crystal Palace in September.

On the flip side, only Leicester have scored more than Manuel Pellegrini's men this season, with City average both two points per game and two goals per game from their 16 outings so far. They have already lost four games but, as with Arsenal, the inconsistent nature of the teams they would usually expect to be their main challengers means that they are still well placed. Victory tonight would lift them up into second place above the Gunners and close the gap on Leicester to just three - certainly not an unassailable lead for the Foxes.

Indeed, City face the Foxes in their final game of 2015 in what could be a battle of the top two at the time. City have a tough run of fixtures coming up including tonight, with the exception of hosting Sunderland on Boxing Day. After that match against Sam Allardyce's side, City do not face another team currently in the bottom half of the table until they take on the Black Cats again in February, with games against Leicester (a), Watford (a), Everton (h), Crystal Palace (h) and West Ham (a) in the middle of all that, in addition to a two-legged League Cup semi-final against Everton.

That run of fixtures will be particularly worrying for City as their record against top-half opposition has not been great recently. Whereas Arsenal have picked up some notable victories against teams at the right end of the standings, City have taken just one point from their last four games against teams in the top 10 - a run that includes heavy defeats at the hands of Tottenham and Liverpool. They did beat Everton, Crystal Palace and Watford during a flying start to the season, but since then their only top-half point has come in a goalless Manchester derby against United.

Indeed, things have not been going quite to plan for City ever since their 100% start was brought to a halt after five games. Having picked up 15 points from the first 15 available, City have since amassed 17 from the next 33 on offer - not the worst record by any means but also not really title form. They have only won two of their last five Premier League games, with the second of those being last weekend's narrow victory over Swansea. That win had no small element of luck about it as Toure's strike deflected off Iheanacho and in for a 92nd-minute winner after Bafetimbi Gomis has seemingly rescued managerless Swansea a point in the 90th minute.

It is away from home where their main troubles have come this season, particularly in recent weeks. City have lost their last two on the road, failed to score in their last three and won just one of their last five in all competitions. In the Premier League alone City are winless in their last four away outings, picking up just two points from a possible 12 since they made it five away wins on the bounce with victory over Crystal Palace in September. City have not gone five away games without a win in the Premier League since April 2011.

Even more worryingly for the Citizens, they have also failed to score in their last three on the road in the Premier League, last finding the back of the net when Kevin De Bruyne gave them a 25th-minute lead against Tottenham Hotspur in September - a match City went on to lose 4-1. It has been 335 minutes of goalless away action for City in the league since then, and should they add another 90 to that tally tonight then they would have gone four in a row without finding the back of the net for the first time in almost a decade.

Only three teams have scored fewer away goals than City's seven in the Premier League this season, all of whom currently sit in the bottom half of the table (Stoke, West Brom and Newcastle). They also only have the 12th-best away record in the division, which really isn't good enough for a side with title ambitions. The vast majority of their points have come at the Etihad, where they have picked up 10 more than they have on the road this season. On a positive note, City have only conceded in two of their seven away games this season, and their tally of six conceded on the road is the best in the Premier League.

Although this season has not been as positive as City fans would have hoped for so far, their side remain in all four competitions are are well placed in three of them, including the Premier League title race. They take on Everton in a League Cup semi-final double-header next month, while the draw for the last 16 was kind to them and they will fancy their chances to making it through to the quarter-finals for the first time in their history ip against Dynamo Kiev. Add to that an FA Cup third round clash with Norwich, and things could definitely be worse for City.

PREDICTION: Right, we're only 10 minutes away from kickoff in this huge match now, which means that it is time for a prediction! In years gone by, it would have been tough to back Arsenal in big matches like this, but they enter the game as favourites, and rightly so. You can never count City out, particularly when Aguero is on the field, but Arsenal's record against top-half opposition, as well as City's away record means that I can see the hosts coming out on top here. I'm going to go for 2-1 to Arsenal.

Check out what we had to say about this match in our Christmas-themed Sports Mole sofa this week:

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Manchester City don't have the best record at Arsenal down the years, winning just one of their last 18 visits to Highbury and the Emirates and losing 11 of those. However, Arsenal have only won one of the last six. Home and away, City have lost 22 times in the league to Arsenal, which is the joint most against any opponent, level with Chelsea.

The corresponding fixture last season ended in a 2-2 draw back in September 2014, although only one of the goalscorers that day - Aguero - starts this evening. Wilshere and Sanchez got the goals for Arsenal, while Demichelis got City's second. At the Etihad, Cazorla and Giroud were on the scoresheet in that 2-0 victory I mentioned earlier.

KICKOFF: Right, the time for talking is over! Arsenal get us underway in this title tussle as both sides look to close the gap on Leicester heading into Christmas.

Arsenal have enjoyed the majority of the ball in these opening exchanges, but there has been nothing major to shout out so far. Both teams are just feeling each other at the moment.

An early bit of concern for Delph here, who appears to have picked up a knock. The England international has had his fair share of injury troubles since his summer move from Aston Villa, but it looks like he will be able to carry on here.

Almost an early opening for Arsenal as Ozil comes down the left and looks for a low pass into the middle, but Walcott can't get out of the way in time and it bounces off him and out for a goal kick.

The first shot of the day comes from the visitors, but it is a disappointing one from Silva. The Spaniard was afforded far too much room just outside the box, but his powerful strike was a long way high and wide.

City are seeing a decent amount of the ball now, and plenty of it is coming inside the Arsenal half. It is all happening in front of the Gunners' defence, however, with no tests for either keeper so far.

SHOT! Another City shot arrives from range, and this one is closer than Silva's earlier effort, but Fernandinho's powerful drive still flies high and wide of Cech's goal.

Both sides continue to battle for early supremacy in this one, but the opening 12 minutes have been a little tentative and very much even.

Some poor play from Monreal allows City the first chance to break free, with De Bruyne leading the charge down the right flank. The ball is eventually worked all the way out to the left before being played back inside to Silva, whose shot is blocked before it can test Cech.

This really is an even tussle at the moment, perhaps more so than some Arsenal fans would have expected considering City's recent away form. No signs yet of which way this one could go.

City are just knocking the ball about inside the Arsenal half at the moment. There is no real urgency about the play from either side, but they are looking patient and comfortable in possession.

Aguero has not really been involved in the opening 20 minutes or so here, although his first touch a moment ago showed signs of rustiness. It may take him a few more touches to get back into the swing of things after four games out.

Almost a chance for Walcott as Monreal's cut-back is deflected into the Englishman's path. The angle is about as tight as it gets, but a gap to goal briefly opens up thanks to another kind ricochet, before the ball runs out of play.

SAVE! Finally one of the goalkeepers are called into action as De Bruyne picks up the ball on the right flank before cutting inside his man and firing a low strike towards the near post. It may be going wide anyway, but Cech takes no risks and turns it behind for a corner.

Kolarov is perhaps a little fortunate to get away without a booking here having tripped Ozil just as Arsenal were looking to break away. The City man protests his innocence, but the referee has been lenient with him there.

Expect Kevin De Bruyne to be ironically cheered with every set piece from now on. He went to take a quick corner a little earlier, only to trip over the corner flag. It has delighted the Arsenal fans, and is just about the best thing that has happened in this match so far.

City have just edged possession so far, with 54%, and they have had the only hints of an attacking threat, but there really hasn't been much to shout about so far. Those possession statistics are a good indication of how evenly-matched the two teams have been so far.

Hart finally has his first piece of action, and he doesn't do it very well. A cross arrived from the right flank that the England keeper came to punch, but he didn't get enough on it to clear the danger. Hart got away with it, however, as the subsequent cross from the right went all the way through to safety.

YELLOW CARD! A number of contentious tackles fly in in quick succession which referee Andre Marriner lets run, much to the annoyance of the home fans. A free kick is eventually awarded to Arsenal, though, and Silva becomes the first name in the book as a result.

CHANCE! Huge chance for City to take the lead - the first clear opening of the game. Koscielny follows Aguero in short and the Argentine just gets a deft flick to the ball to send De Bruyne through down the right. Silva is busting a gut to get up in support, but De Bruyne goes for goal himself and sends a low effort narrowly past the far post.

First blood to Arsenal with their first shot of the game! It all stems from Koscielny, who fizzes a pass in to Ozil. The German gives the ball out to Walcott, who cuts back inside before shipping a brilliant effort into the far corner from the edge of the box. It is another assist for Ozil, but that one was all about the finish.

Hopefully that should liven this game up a little as well. It was sorely in need of a goal, and suddenly things look like hotting up a bit after a pretty dire opening half an hour.

CHANCE! Almost another chance for the hosts as Ozil whips a corner towards the front post that Koscielny flicks on across the box. Ramsey is there at the back post, but he can't quite reach the ball to get sufficient contact on it.

There certainly seems to be a little more of a spark since that opening goal, with Arsenal beginning to carry more of a threat and City keen to hit back before half time.

Arsene Wenger will be pretty happy with what he has seen from his side so far. City have been limited mainly to shots from outside the box despite seeing a good chunk of the ball, while Aguero has barely been given a sniff.

Almost a chance for City to break as the ball is worked up to Campbell, but his final ball over the top towards Walcott is too hard and runs all the way through to the keeper. A better pass there and Walcott would have been in.

Yaya Toure is furious with the referee about something here after Giroud went down under the challenge of Otamendi. It was a certain foul on the Arsenal striker, but Toure seems to be angry with Giroud's elbows on some of the defenders.

There will be one minute of added time at the end of this first half.

What a way to end the half! Arsenal double their advantage right on the stroke of half time, but it is one of Man City's own doing. Mangala's pass put Delph in all sorts of trouble, gifting the ball to Arsenal inside City's half, and they were quick to take advantage. Ozil plays the pass to Giroud to claim his 15th assist of the season, and Giroud drills a powerful low strike between the legs of Hart.

The first half comes to an end at the Emirates, then, and while it hasn't been a particularly entertaining game for the most part, Arsenal will be delighted with that opening 45 minutes. They are in command at the Emirates with a 2-0 lead over Manchester City despite only having had those two shots on goal.

The opening goal came shortly after the half-hour mark, and it was a beauty from Walcott to break the deadlock following what had been an uneventful 30 minutes. Koscielny and Ozil combined to find the winger, who cut inside from his flank before thumping a whipped effort into the bottom far corner past a helpless Hart.

The second arrived right on the stroke of half time to send Arsenal into the break absolutely flying, and it was another goal for Giroud, who made it six in his last three-and-a-half games. It was a crisp finish between the legs of Hart, who may be a little disappointed, but the main bulk of the blame lies with Mangala. The City centre-back gave the ball away inside his own half, and Arsenal were immediately on them to punish the mistake.

Mesut Ozil's two passes to set up the goals were certainly not the most probing that he has ever played, but it is two more assist for the German nonetheless, taking him up to 15 already for the season. The all-time Premier League record for a single campaign is 20, held by Thierry Henry, and considering we are not even halfway through this season yet, Ozil looks destined to smash that record.

The opening goal came just over a minute after City had spurned the first real chance of the match, so things could have been very different for the visitors. It was De Bruyne who had the opening, being played clean through by Aguero's flick only to send a low effort narrowly wide of the far post. The Belgian had Silva in support, but you can't really blame him for going for goal himself, although he should have scored.

Aside from that, the visitors have been limited to efforts from outside the area so far. Silva and Fernandinho have both fired powerful efforts high and wide of the target, while De Bruyne has had a low strike of his own turned past the post by Cech. They need to offer substantially more if they are to get back into this one.

KICKOFF: Manchester City get us back underway as they look to salvage something from this match, and the first thing to tell you is that Pellegrini has made a change at the break, bringing Raheem Sterling on in place of Delph.

YELLOW CARD! Otamendi seemed intent to leave his mark on Giroud, and he does exactly that here by barging into the Frenchman from behind. It is a needless challenge and one that brings the defender a deserved yellow card.

There is a relaxed air about Arsenal in this second half, although perhaps too much so. They don't want to cross the line to complacency and hand City a route back into this match.

Better from City as they put in a sustained period of pressure in the final third, although Arsenal didn't help themselves by failing to clear their lines. The attack eventually comes to an end when Aguero couldn't get enough power behind his shot on the turn to truly test Cech.

CHANCE! Big chance for Arsenal to put this game to bed! The hosts come down the left flank, with Ozil sliding a pass to Monreal, who in turn plays a low cross into the box. Otamendi is unable to cut it out and Campbell gets in front of his man, only to blaze his effort over the bar when he really should have done better.

SAVE! Decent chance for City to put the ball in the box here as Ramsey is penalised for holding on to Silva. Kolarov stands over the ball and swings a cross in towards the front post, but Aguero's glancing header is straight at Cech.

CHANCE! Chance at the other end for Arsenal now as a long ball over to the right finds Campbell in space. Everyone seems to be expecting the flag to go up, but it stays down and Campbell finds himself clean through. He can only get a toe to the ball, however, and Hart makes a big save. Moments later another ball arrives from the right, but this time Otamendi puts it behind just as Giroud was about to pull the trigger.

This is a much more enjoyable half to the opening 45 minutes so far, it must be said. City are seeing more of the ball and carrying more of a threat, but Arsenal look dangerous too.

CHANCE! Huge chance for Arsenal to get a third, and what a goal it would have been. It all starts with Bellerin battling away and winning possession to launch a counter-attack. Ozil eventually slips a pass to Campbell, who in turn plays a lovely little ball in to Ramsey to send the Welshman clean through inside the box. Hart is out to make a vital stop with his face, though.

Interestingly, Aguero has gone to sit on the bench having come off the field following a collision that left him down clutching his head. He hasn't gone straight into the dressing room for treatment, but City are at the moment down to 10 men as Bony is not ready to come on.

MAN CITY SUB: There is the change for City, and it is Wilfried Bony who replaces Aguero.

Dreadful from Mangala yet again as he completely misjudges a bounce, allowing Walcott to almost get in behind. The Arsenal man is held up by two other City defenders and the attack eventually breaks down when a cross is over-hit, but that really was poor from Mangala.

This really is a good, open game now, which suits Arsenal best. City have no option other than to throw caution to the wind now, which opens up the opportunity on the break for the Gunners.

CHANCE! Half a chance for Arsenal as Giroud lifts a cross into the middle for Ramsey, who just ghosted into the box unseen between the two centre-backs. He chests the ball down in space, but is quickly closed and forced to cut back on himself before sending his effort well off target.

ARSENAL SUB: A change for the home side here as Kieran Gibbs replaces Campbell for the final 20 minutes.

Two minor penalty appeals in quick succession for City as both Sterling and Toure go down inside the box, but the referee rightly waves both of them away.

MAN CITY SUB: A third and final change for the visitors as Jesus Navas comes on to replace Silva.

SAVE! Decent play from Sterling as he looks to emulate Walcott, cutting inside and whipping an effort towards goal. He goes for the near post, however, and it is easy for Cech to collect.

SAVE! City are knocking on the door much more often now, with Bony the latest to test Cech. Again it is a straightforward one from the keeper, however, as he plucks Bony's header from the air with ease.

ARSENAL SUB: Another change for Arsenal as Ozil makes way to be replaced by Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.

CHANCE! Big chance for City to grab themselves a lifeline, but it is a shocking decision from Navas. He is played clean through on goal down the right channel but, instead of going for goal himself, he tries to find Bony without even looking up to see where the striker was. Mertesacker easily intercepts, and a very presentable chance goes begging.

Hart is called into action again here to stop a low drive from around 25 yards as Arsenal go in search of that killer third goal, which in truth they probably should have got already.

This one is not over quite yet! City finally get an away goal in the Premier League, and what a goal it is. Toure exchanges passes with Sagna before sending a magnificent left-footed effort soaring into the top corner. Cech was a mere spectator as that lofted into the back of the net from what was such a languid strike from Toure. Superb goal.

CHANCE! Chance for Arsenal to come up with an immediate response here as Ramsey us clean through on goal, but his dinked finish drops just past the far post. Big opportunity for the hosts.

CHANCE! A chance at the other end for City now! Bony flicks the ball to De Bruyne before picking up the loose ball in the area when the Belgian is tackled, but his strike is deflected narrowly wide.

Suddenly it is all very nervy for Arsenal. It is one-way traffic and City are looking very dangerous during their time camped inside the Arsenal half. Another half chance goes begging here as Toure's mis-hit shot is nodded over by Bony.

CHANCE! Another big chance for City as Toure begins to take this game by the scruff of its neck. He slides a pass in to De Bruyne before receiving the return ball, but under pressure from Walcott he puts his shot wide on the slide.

ARSENAL SUB: The hosts' third and final change sees Calum Chambers replace Walcott. It's all about protecting this lead for Arsenal now.

Giroud takes a big chance here as he goes to ground with a tackle inside his own area. Otamendi is the man on the end of the challenge, but Giroud gets the ball and the muted City claims for a penalty are rightly ignored.

There will be four minutes of added time at the end of this match. Can City steal a point or will Arsenal hold out?

Arsenal haven't managed the closing stages of this game too well in general, but they have the ball at the right end of the field at the moment. They are just one minute away from what would be a huge victory.

Arsenal hold out for all three points to move within two points of leaders Leicester at Christmas, and perhaps even more importantly four clear of City. The goals came in the first half for Arsenal, with Walcott and Giroud putting the Gunners in charge at the interval, and that proved to be enough despite Yaya Toure making things uncomfortable with a late goal back.

That is all we have time for this evening! Thank you very much for joining Sports Mole for what turned into a cracking match after a slow start, with Arsenal holding on for a 2-1 victory over title rivals Manchester City. I will leave you with our match report, and be sure to stick around for reaction, analysis and player ratings. You can also have the chance to see how City respond to this defeat in person courtesy of our competition to win tickets to their home match against Sunderland on Boxing Day, details of which can be found below. From me, though, it is goodbye for now, and from all of us here, have a very happy Christmas!