Everything you need to know ahead of the Premier League clash at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday afternoon Manchester City kick-off their Premier League title defence against Arsenal, with many of their players still short of fitness but seemingly in fine form. Pep Guardiola named a strong line-up for last weekend's Community Shield victory over Chelsea, choosing several first-team players who had previously not featured on the US tour during the International Champions Cup. Kevin De Bruyne and David Silva are among the big names yet to feature this summer, but City have plenty of options. Man City injuries David Silva missed Sunday's game against Chelsea with an injury and it is currently unknown whether he will return against Arsenal. Another factor to consider is Bernardo Silva's fine pre-season form in midfield. Danilo is set to miss the first few games of the season with an ankle injury he picked up during the World Cup. Man City suspensions Neither side have any suspensions. Man City potential starting line-up Ederson has not yet played in pre-season but will surely come back into the side at the Emirates Stadium. Kyle Walker and Benjamin Mendy started at full-back at Wembley and seem good bets to do so again. In the middle of defence it is harder to predict given City have four viable options, and Guardiola is likely to pick based on the opposition. John Stones and Aymeric Laporte performed well against Chelsea, and given Arsenal may show a similar sense of adventure against City it would make sense if those two started yet again. Fernandinho is the first choice for the defensive midfield role, though ahead of him it is harder to predict. Guardiola says his team is currently "Bernardo Silva plus 10 more", suggesting the Portuguese will start in midfield. De Bruyne did not play for City in pre-season but he is the closest to the club's star man and it would be a safe bet to expect him to start the season. Up front is also hard to predict, although the three that started a week ago could easily do so again. Arsenal team news Unai Emery will be without Sead Kolasinac and Laurent Koscielny for his first competitive game as Arsenal boss. Nacho Monreal is also doubtful with a knee injury, meaning Ainsley Maitland-Niles could start at left-back. New signing Bernd Leno has been picked for three of Arsenal's five friendlies as he looks to claim the No.1 spot from Petr Cech. Fellow new boy Sokratis is also in line to start, with Shkodran Mustafi beside him at the heart of the defence. Lucas Torreira, another new signing, could make his debut in midfield. TV coverage & kick-off time Kick-off is 4pm BST (11am ET) on Sunday August 12, and the game will be shown on Sky Sports in the United Kingdom. It will be shown on NBC in the United States, and on various channels around the world. Opta match facts<doc-sep>Danny Welbeck was heavily linked with a move away from Arsenal this summer (Picture: Getty) Unai Emery has hinted Danny Welbeck could be set to deputise as an emergency left-back against Manchester City on Sunday. Arsenal are without Sead Kolasinac, who suffered a knee ligament injury against Chelsea in pre-season, while Nacho Monreal only returned to full training earlier this week. Summer signing Stephan Lichtsteiner and youngster Ainsley Maitland Niles, who filled in at left-back last season, are likely to be given the task of taming City’s wingers Riyad Mahrez and Leroy Sane, but Emery revealed Welbeck has emerged as an unlikely contender. ‘Danny has multi-position possibilities – right winger, left winger, striker,’ said Emery. ‘And, yesterday, he worked with us at left back. His performance was good! Nacho Monreal only returned to full training earlier this week (Picture: Getty) ‘I like this positive spirit to help. I’ve said to him I want the best performance in his career, with better quality and data – more goals, more assists.’ Welbeck, who has just under a year remaining on his current contract, was heavily linked with a transfer away from Arsenal this summer but a move has yet to materialise. Southampton and Everton were the Premier League clubs credited with an interest, while Besiktas were also linked with the England international who could still leave for a European side before the August 31st deadline.<doc-sep>Sign up to FREE email alerts from Football London - Arsenal Invalid Email Something went wrong, please try again later. Subscribe Thank you for subscribing We have more newsletters Show me See our privacy notice Arsenal look set to receive a big injury boost head of their Premier League opener against Manchester City. The Gunners kick-off their 2018/19 campaign on Sunday when they welcome Pep Guardiola’s champions to the Emirates. And they should have Aaron Ramsey fit and available for the clash, as the Wales international appears to have fully recovered from the calf injury he sustained before the pre-season friendly against Chelsea on August 2. Ramsey suffered the problem during the pre-match warm up at the Aviva Stadium and was forced to sit out the game against the Blues, as well as the 2-0 win against Lazio in Stockholm last Saturday. But he returned to light training on Tuesday and took a full part in Thursday’s session at London Colney and should be fit to feature on Sunday, providing he has no setbacks before then. Danny Welbeck also took a full part in the session, despite several clubs expressing an interest in signing him before Thursday’s 5pm transfer deadline. Sead Kolasinac will miss Sunday’s game, however, with a knee injury and is not expected back for around two months. Nacho Monreal returned to light training on Tuesday after a knee problem of his own but remains a doubt to face City, with Ainsley Maitland-Niles likely to start at left-back against the champions. Meanwhile, Lucas Perez has penned a message to Arsenal fans following his move to West Ham. The Spaniard completed his switch to the London Stadium on Thursday morning, ending his two-year spell at the Emirates. During those two years he failed to really make his mark with the Gunners, having quickly fallen out of favour with Arsene Wenger, scoring just one Premier League goal. Perez spent last season on loan at former club Deportivo La Coruna but there was a thought he could get a chance to stake his claim at Arsenal this summer following the arrival of Unai Emery. That has not been the case, however, and the 29-year-old has now joined West Ham in a deal worth £4 million, with minimal add-ons. With the transfer confirmed, the forward took to social media to send a message to Arsenal supporters around the world. He said: “Today I would like to thank Arsenal fans fro their support, they always showed me affection and love from the first time I arrived in London. “I also want to give my thanks to my teammates and to the staff of this club for giving me the opportunity to make debut in one of the best leagues in the world and win the FA Cup. “I wish you all the best for the future and I hope you can go on and achieve great things.” Keep up to date with the latest news, features and exclusives from football.london via the free football.london app for iPhone and Android. Available to download from the App Store and Google Play.<doc-sep>
Everything you need to know ahead of the Premier League match at Emirates Stadium on Sunday afternoon Unai Emery will take charge of his first competitive match as Arsenal head coach on Sunday when the Gunners face Manchester City at Emirates Stadium. Emery is set to pit his wits against Pep Guardiola and the reigning champions, who are favourites for the Premier League title this season. Arsenal have added to their squad this summer with the signings of Bernd Leno, Sokratis, Lucas Torreira, Matteo Guendouzi and Stephan Lichtsteiner, and they will be hoping to build on last season's sixth-placed finish under former manager Arsene Wenger. Arsenal injuries Aaron Ramsey has returned to training but left-back Sead Kolasinac is out for 8-10 weeks with a knee injury. Long-term absentee Laurent Koscielny is aiming to return to training at the end of the year. Arsenal suspensions Arsenal have no suspensions for this game. Possible Arsenal starting line-up Emery could hand debuts to Leno, Sokratis and Torreira while Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette look set to start in attack. Henrikh Mkhitaryan may start in the inside right position while Granit Xhaka could partner new boy Torreira in midfield. Man City team news City have avoided any pre-season injuries with long-term absentee Benjamin Mendy back in the fold. New signing Riyad Mahrez is likely to make his debut, while the likes of Raheem Sterling, Leroy Sane, Gabriel Jesus, Sergio Aguero and Bernado Silva make up the mouth-watering attacking options for Pep Guardiola's side. TV coverage & kick-off time Kick-off is 4pm BST (11am ET) on Sunday August 12, and the game will be shown on Sky Sports in the United Kingdom. It will be shown on NBC in the United States, and on various channels around the world. Best Opta match facts