Arsenal can't repeat Pep Guardiola error again as Liverpool can show Premier League title truth

Arsenal can't repeat Pep Guardiola error again as Liverpool can show Premier League title truth

Pep Guardiola got so used to winning the Premier League title that he let his assistant manager move to a rival just to give himself a challenge — or so went the joke earlier this season

That has been said less frequently lately, with it having become clear that Mikel Arteta's Arsenal has in fact got what it takes to win the title at the expense of Manchester City — the Gunners are not out of sight yet, but they could be soon. It is also, of course, not true, with Liverpool and Jürgen Klopp having given them plenty of competition in recent year

Manchester City beat Liverpool last weekend thanks to a second-half blitz, taking advantage of Klopp's men falling apart. This weekend at Anfield, Arsenal will hope to achieve a similar result, though a repeat of the 4-1 scoreline seems unlikely

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Liverpool needs to show a response after two disappointing results, while Arsenal is looking for a first win at Anfield in more than 10 years, having last picked up the three points there in September 2012, a few weeks into the Brendan Rodgers er

Since Arteta took charge at the Emirates, he has visited Anfield twice, losing 3-1 and then 4-0. But those scorelines do not tell the full story

Last season, for instance, Arteta made an error that Guardiola had previously done, dancing around on the touchline and inadvertently becoming the touchpaper for igniting the stadium and then the Liverpool player

With the atmosphere nervy and Arsenal performing quite well, Arteta changed the course of the game in one moment.

 He was furious that Sadio Mané had fouled one of his Arsenal players, seemingly claiming that the Senegalese had used an elbow against Takehiro Tomiyasu, when replays of the incident showed nothing of the sorry

Arteta reacted furiously, trying to get the attention of referee Michael Oliver, with Klopp stepping up to defend his man. The Anfield crowd responded accordingly, with the Main Stand having the best view of Arteta's antic

As Liverpool.com noted at the time: "What had been a fairly quiet start to the game, with tension on the pitch and in the stands, became something more akin to a European night under the lights

Pep Guardiola and Mikel Arteta on the touchline at Anfield

Mané scored a short time later before Diogo Jota, Mohamed Salah and Takumi Minamino capped off what became a comfortable win. Prior to Arteta's moment of hot headedness, it was threatening to become trick

Guardiola (and others) has had a similarly negative impact on his sides in the past, with the Manchester City boss' famous 'twice' rant on the touchline one particular moment that stands out (not least because Arteta was alongside him for that

But Sunday's clash will be a sign of how far Arsenal has really changed this season if they can manage the game better, be more streetwise and navigate their way through what could be a tricky encounter

Anything but a loss would keep them in the driving seat, but never before has Arsenal had a better opportunity to end its dismal Anfield run.

 For that reason, the way Arsenal and its manager approach the game this weekend could be instructive of how the Premier League title race will finish — with it clearly in Liverpool's favor to continue the Gunners' hoodoo