Arsenal boss Unai Emery has admitted that Manchester City counterpart Pep Guardiola is a "better" manager than him, as the two men prepare to lock horns this weekend.
Emery will take charge of the Gunners in a competitive match for the first time on Sunday afternoon when the Premier League champions travel to the Emirates Stadium.
The Spaniard knows former Barcelona boss Guardiola well from their time in La Liga, where he failed to win any of their 10 meetings as manager of Valencia and Sevilla.
Ahead of their first showdown on English soil, Emery has welcomed the challenge of getting one over on his compatriot.
"I am 46, he is 47 and he started his career as a player, bigger than me," he said at his pre-match presser. "His career as a coach is also bigger than mine.
"We started our careers as coaches at maybe the same kind of time and his career, statistically, is better than me also but I like more playing against him because it demands more from the preparation, to try to win against his teams.
"When we were in Spain each match against Barcelona with Valencia is very exciting and very demanding for me also to prepare for this match."
Arsenal have won just two of their last 12 encounters with Man City in all competitions.
