FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football - Premier League - Manchester City v Arsenal - Etihad Stadium, Manchester, Britain - March 31, 2024 Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta and Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola before the match REUTERS/Carl Recine/File Photo
LONDON (Reuters) - Sunday's clash between champions Manchester City and Arsenal is already being billed as a pivotal moment in the title race even though the Premier League season is only four rounds in.
The two teams have been battling it out for the past two seasons with Pep Guardiola's City triumphant on both occasions as they stretched their run to an unprecedented four in a row.
Nothing in the opening salvos of the new campaign suggests it will be any different this time, although many are predicting that Arsenal can finally break City's stranglehold and a positive result on Sunday would be a psychological boost.
City's sky blue horizon is clouded by the beginning of an independent commission's hearing into 115 charges for alleged breaches of the Premier League's financial rules -- charges the Abu Dhabi-owned club strenuously deny -- which began on Monday.
But despite that distraction it has been business as usual on the pitch and City sit top of the table with a maximum 12 points and striker Erling Haaland already threatening to shatter his own records having scored nine goals already.
Arsenal came through a key test last weekend when they went to north London rivals Tottenham Hotspur without key midfielder Declan Rice and captain Martin Odegaard but still claimed a 1-0 victory to move them to 10 points from their four games.
Mikel Arteta's side beat City 1-0 in the early months of last season and drew 0-0 at The Etihad -- a result that at the time looked better for the London club.
But City won their next nine matches and clinched the title on the last day of the season by two points.
Arsenal know the margin for error in the title race will be wafer thin again and while defeat at City on Sunday would not be terminal -- a five-point deficit would already look ominous.
ARSENAL BOOST
Arteta will be boosted on Sunday by the return of England international Rice from suspension but their Norway midfielder Odegaard will again be absent with ankle ligament damage.
City will be keen to get back to winning ways having been held to a 0-0 draw at home by Inter Milan in their Champions League opener on Wednesday and will have a slight advantage with Arsenal having one day less to prepare after their Champions League clash against Atalanta on Thursday.
"We know Arsenal very well, they know us very well, and obviously it will be a very intense game," City defender Ruben Dias said of the eagerly-anticipated clash.
"It's still early stages, but it's never too early to play a clash like this. We'll be there. We'll be ready."
The weekend's action in the Premier League begins at the London Stadium with West Ham United hosting a Chelsea side buoyed by their victory at Bournemouth last weekend.
Third-placed Newcastle United could go top of the standings, for 24 hours at least, on Saturday if they win at Fulham, while Aston Villa in fifth have the chance to maintain their strong start as they host Midlands rivals Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Fourth-placed Liverpool, who like Villa have nine points, host Bournemouth seeking to make up for last week's surprise home defeat by Nottingham Forest.
Tottenham Hotspur got out of jail with two late goals sparing them a League Cup defeat at second-tier Coventry City on Wednesday but the rumbling discontent with the club's start will grow louder if they fail to beat Brentford at home.
Meanwhile, Everton and Southampton will seek their first points with the Toffees at Leicester City and Saints hosting fellow promoted side Ipswich Town.
(Reporting by Martyn Herman; Editing by Ken Ferris)
