Arsenal will know that if they fail to win here, then their title race is all but over.
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Pochettino opted to name midfielder Dele Alli amongst his substitutes against West Ham after the teenager sustained an ankle injury during the warm-up of his side’s previous clash against Swansea before playing the full 90 minutes.
In 2012, City claimed their first Premier League title in dramatic fashion on the final day of the season, having being trailing by eight points with six games remaining.
“It’s hard to know”, the Argentinean said.
In a season where Chelsea, Manchester United and Liverpool have been off the pace, along with inconsistent form from Arsenal and Man City, this year’s title is there for the taking. “Different clubs sometimes sign a player or a manager with a big background or big trophies behind them”, the Argentine said.
Kolarov hopes City’s experience of past success comes to the fore as they look to put pressure on the sides above them.
“You’re never completely ideal before a game in March”.
The meeting will be the Wenger’s 48th North London derby in his 20th season at Arsenal and Pochettino believes the Frenchman has earned his longevity.
“I think we can win the Premier League with the players we have but, that said, we lack a certain hunger”.
Manchester United are tied on points with City after beating Watford 1-0 at Old Trafford thanks to Juan Mata’s free-kick in the 83rd minute.
“This is one game where fans are always behind us, and it is down to us to give them more belief and make them more vocal”.
However, City have a game in hand on the Foxes, while fellow contenders Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal also lost in midweek. We prepare for every single game with the same intensity, the same focus and there are not a lot of special things to do.
“And if we analyse the game, we played much better than them”.
The same happened with Alexis Sanchez earlier in the season when Wenger played him against Norwich despite knowing of a hamstring problem which then flared up in the game and ruled him out for the festive period.
Kolarov added: “United are now on the same points as us so we have to be careful about what is coming up on our backs as well”.
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Third-placed Arsenal could not take advantage, losing 2-1 at home to Swansea City, despite taking the lead against the relegation contenders.
