Nigel Winterburn urges old club to 'believe in winning' ahead of Arsenal's showdown with Manchester City

All eyes will be on The Etihad Stadium on Sunday, when Manchester City host Arsenal in a game that will likely determine who will lift the Premier League trophy this season. 

Six points separate the pair, with Arsenal leading but having played a game more than their rivals and come into the game having already lost to City last month in the Carabao Cup and slipped up against Bournemouth last weekend. 

Their form has once again raised questions over whether Mikel Arteta's men have what it takes to get over the line and finally secure a first title since 2002. 



They head to The Etihad, knowing they've failed to win at the stadium in over a decade, but speaking exclusively to DAZN News, thanks to BetTom Casino, former Gunners title-winner Nigel Winterburn has urged Arsenal to go there with a winning mentality, or risk losing all the advantage they have right now in the championship race. 

"I think you've got to believe in what you're trying to achieve," Winterburn said. 

"Go into the game and try to win it and then certainly not lose it. So the mindset is going to be the same as it's always been.

"I think with Mikel Arteta and the team he sets up, they obviously try and win the game, but also, they're defensively,  they have been very good throughout the season and they've really got to make sure they don't lose the game.

"It's about desire. It's just about knowing what your end goal will be. And I think the way that Pep is talking and everyone's looking at this is that they believe if Arsenal can go and win the game, they'll take the title. That will give them enough points and enough momentum.

"If City win it, then it shows everything wide open. It just puts that doubt into the minds of the Arsenal players." 



A win for City would close the gap to just three points and a victory in the game in hand would see them level up on points going into what would be an enthralling final few games of the season. 

Having led the way for so much of the campaign, Winterburn is still confident they will become champions, but has huge concerns following the performance against the Cherries. 

Adding, "I've been super confident that Arsenal would win the league this season with the squad that they've got.

"But if you were going to look at what's happened in the last couple of weeks, it's a worry.  I would say that at the weekend it was a bad performance. It looked as if there was a nervousness there. It's probably the worst I've seen this season, and that was the big disappointing factor for me at this stage of the season.

"And that's why I think it's a huge game on Sunday."