Arsenal welcome Manchester City to Emirates Stadium on Sunday, in the latest instalment of a fixture that has become a Premier League blockbuster. Here, football writer Adrian Kajumba selects some of the standout matches, goals and incidents their meetings have produced in the past.
Henry’s Highbury screamer - February 2004
By Thierry Henry’s own admission, long-range thunderbolts "weren’t my type of goals. Those goals are more like Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink or Alan Shearer-type goals."
Henry preferred to curl his shots into the net. But, for a reason he could not explain, he felt like trying something different when Manchester City visited Highbury during Arsenal’s 2003/04 "Invincibles" season.
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With seven minutes remaining, Henry received possession just outside the box. The outcome was spectacular - the Frenchman unleashed an unstoppable shot that flew through the air and into the top corner, beyond the despairing dive of Man City goalkeeper David James.
The goal was worthy of winning any game, as this one proved to do, in a 2-1 triumph for the Gunners.
And Henry’s perfect knee-slide celebration on the rain-soaked Highbury surface only enhanced the goal as an iconic moment from Arsenal and Man City's head-to-head history.
Pires and Henry’s penalty mix-up - October 2005
Around the mid-2000s, Arsenal were one of the best teams around, with Robert Pires and Henry among the players in their pomp - and their confidence levels were summed up by an audacious move they attempted against Man City.
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The Gunners duo tried to recreate a penalty made famous by Dutch legend Johan Cruyff in 1982, in which the spot-kick taker passes to an incoming team-mate rather than shooting directly from the spot.
Sadly for Henry and Pires, the plan backfired, blowing their chances of putting Arsenal 2-0 up.
Pires failed to properly connect with the ball, Henry sprinted past him in anticipation of a pass that never came, and they were left embarrassed as what they had practised perfectly all week failed to come off when it mattered most.
Danny Mills was among the Man City players less than impressed, branding the infamous incident "disrespectful."
Post-match, Henry said: "I take all the blame, it was my idea. If it had worked it would have been a brilliant idea, but it did not work." However, he has since insisted "I didn’t mess up anything."
Pires, meanwhile, has accepted the blame, saying: "It was my fault, my mistake."
"I felt disbelief," was manager Arsene Wenger’s reaction and he was not alone in that.
At least the damage was limited by Pires scoring Arsenal’s winner, earlier in the game, with a more successful penalty.
Adebayor’s iconic celebration - September 2009
In July 2009, Emmanuel Adebayor left Arsenal to join Man City, a move that was the prelude to one of the most memorable celebrations in Premier League history.
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Following the switch, Adebayor went from hero to villain in the eyes of Arsenal supporters; to express this, they adapted a previously positive song about him.
After being alerted to the now-negative chant during his first meeting with his former club, the striker was determined to have the final say. And when he scored in Man City’s 4-2 win, Adebayor sensed his opportunity.
He embarked on an incredible pitch-length sprint before sliding on his knees and celebrating, arms outstretched, in front of the visiting fans.
Micah Richards, a Man City team-mate at the time, remembered Adebayor being so hell-bent on running to taunt the travelling supporters that the striker brushed him aside on his way.
For Adebayo, it was like an out-of-body experience, his mind going blank to the point he had to ask another team-mate, Kolo Toure, exactly what happened as they walked back to the centre circle. "When I landed [after scoring], the emotion took over," he explained.
Adebayor was fined £25,000 and received a suspended two-match ban for his celebration, but insisted he had no regrets.
"I will never regret that celebration because of where the anger came from. I think God chose me to score that goal to show them [the Arsenal fans]," he said.
Arteta puts dent in Man City’s title bid - April 2012
Long before he was tasked with trying to mastermind Arsenal wins against Man City as a manager, Mikel Arteta inspired the Gunners to victory in this fixture as a player.
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With only three minutes left of the April 2012 meeting, Arteta won possession in midfield, strode forward and fired a swerving drive past goalkeeper Joe Hart to lift the roof off Emirates Stadium.
At the time, Arteta’s goal sealed a 1-0 win that lifted Arsenal back into third spot and appeared to have done significant damage to Man City’s title challenge, leaving them eight points behind leaders Manchester United.
However, Man City manager Roberto Mancini, who had his star striker Mario Balotelli sent off, refused to throw in the towel and he was proved to be right.
Mancini's men won their final six matches to reel in Man Utd and win the Premier League on goal difference on the last day of the season, thanks to Sergio Aguero’s iconic winner against Queens Park Rangers.
Man City triumph in nine-goal thriller - December 2013
Arsenal were Premier League leaders when they visited the Etihad Stadium in 2013/14 but it was fourth-placed Man City who sent out a statement and displayed their title credentials.
In a meeting between the division’s most prolific attack and meanest defence, the Gunners joined the list of clubs dismantled by Manuel Pellegrini’s side during this campaign.
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Man City had already scored seven goals against Norwich City and six against Tottenham Hotspur plus four against Newcastle United and Man United, all at home.
They then netted another six times against Arsenal, including a rare brace from midfield anchor Fernandinho, his first goals for Man City.
An afternoon to forget for the Gunners was capped by a public row between team-mates Per Mertesacker and Mesut Ozil at full-time.
Mertesacker was angry that his close friend and fellow German international did not go over to applaud the away fans after the final whistle, something Ozil later apologised for on social media.
Man City send Arsenal bottom of the table - August 2021
It might have been too early in the campaign to read too much into the Premier League table, but the standings would still have been unpleasant viewing for Arsenal following yet another unhappy visit to Man City in 2021.
A 5-0 thrashing meant the Gunners lost their opening three league matches for the first time since 1954.
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Having also lost 2-0 at Brentford and at home to Chelsea by the same score, the defeat at Man City left Arteta’s side bottom of the table with a goal difference of minus nine.
It was the first time the Gunners had propped up the top-flight table, having played at least three matches since October 1974.
Man City were already in control after early goals from Ilkay Gundogan and Ferran Torres.
Granit Xhaka’s straight red card in the first half helped strengthen City's grip on the game, and they made the most of their numerical advantage with three more goals from Gabriel Jesus, Rodri, and Torres.
Rodri’s dramatic winner at Emirates Stadium - January 2022
In the return match, Rodri was on target again, this time with a strike that has contributed to his reputation for scoring important goals.
The Spaniard's stoppage-time winner was the defining act in an incident-packed New Year's Day encounter between the two sides.
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Arsenal manager Arteta was absent and watching the game from home following a positive COVID-19 test.
Led by his assistant Albert Stuivenberg, Arsenal’s young side did their missing manager proud, took the game to Man City and deservedly led through Bukayo Saka’s opener.
Riyad Mahrez levelled from the spot before Nathan Ake’s heroic goal-line clearance prevented Arsenal retaking the lead.
The Gunners, who were reduced to ten men when Gabriel was sent off, were seconds away from a draw when Rodri forced in a winner at the death to spark wild Man City celebrations.
Rodrigo with the last-minute winner! 🤯#OnThisDay in 2022, we secured the three points over Arsenal courtesy of this 👇 pic.twitter.com/w4s8BJsbKT
— Manchester City (@ManCity) January 1, 2024
Pep Guardiola's side went 11 points clear at the top of the table with this win and no team had failed to lift the Premier League title after starting the year with such a big advantage.
City kept that statistic true but given they only pipped Liverpool to the title by only a single point in the end, Rodri’s strike at Arsenal proved to be a crucial one in their triumphant 2021/22 season.
De Bruyne masterclass inspires Man City to vital win - April 2023
The following season, Arsenal emerged as Man City’s biggest title challengers, but losing to their rivals at the Etihad Stadium confirmed the momentum was with the hosts.
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Arteta's side had an eight-point lead at the start of April but three successive, costly draws against Liverpool, West Ham United and Southampton were followed by an emphatic loss to Guardiola's men, who were then in pole position to retain their crown.
Man City’s superior quality and title race nous showed as they raised their game when it mattered and subjected Arsenal to a chastening defeat.
Kevin De Bruyne was at his majestic best, scoring twice - he has netted more goals against the Gunners than any other side, with eight. Further strikes from John Stones and Erling Haaland rendered Rob Holding’s consolation goal for Arsenal irrelevant.
The Gunners still had a two-point lead after this but Man City had two games in hand. Having got themselves into such a promising position, it was no surprise City went on to complete the job and claim their third title in a row, finishing five points ahead of Arsenal.
Martinelli ends Arsenal’s long wait for win v Man City - October 2023
Having risen to become genuine title contenders, one of Arsenal’s next challenges in their bid to overhaul Man City was to beat them.
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Following their 2-1 victory in December 2015, Arsenal had failed to win any of the next 15 Premier League meetings between the two clubs.
That sequence, including Man City's run of 12 head-to-head victories in a row, was finally over when substitute Gabriel Martinelli settled a cagey affair with a deflected 86th-minute strike, sparking delirious late celebrations for the Gunners, as years of pain came to an end.
They managed to avoid defeat in the return fixture too, frustrating Man City with a 0-0 draw, the first time they had taken any points at the Etihad Stadium since May 2016.
But the size of Arsenal's task was underlined by the fact that over the course of the season, City still had the edge over them. Guardiola's men beat Arteta's side to the title again, this time by two points.
Rivalry ignites in dramatic four-goal thriller - September 2024
Confirmation that this had become one of the Premier League’s new big rivalries came in the first meeting of 2024/25.
The two clubs produced a classic, unforgettable encounter that had everything - goals, talking points galore, and the sort of needle that the best rivalries require.
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After Haaland put Man City ahead with his 100th goal for the club, Riccardo Calafiori and Gabriel replied for Arsenal, who lost Leandro Trossard to a red card seconds before half-time.
The visitors responded to their numerical disadvantage in almost unprecedented fashion.
They set up camp in their own final third and challenged the hosts to try and break them down, as the Gunners effectively tried to defend their way to a 2-1 victory.
They so nearly managed it, but Stones levelled in the eighth minute of stoppage time, breaking Arsenal’s hearts with Man City’s latest-ever Premier League goal.
In the chaos that followed, Haaland threw the ball at Gabriel’s head, in the latest display of animosity between the pair as their physical and feisty feud in this fixture rumbled on.
The ill feeling continued post-match too, with a fired-up Haaland clashing with Jesus and even telling Arteta to "stay humble."
The scene is therefore set for an intriguing return match on Sunday.