Arsenal need to LEARN from Manchester City, insists Oleksandr Zinchenko

Manchester City are the club Premier League title rivals Arsenal need to “learn from”, says versatile Gunners full-back Oleksandr Zinchenko.

Pep Guardiola and Mikel Arteta’s side are fresh off the back of an intense Premier League title battle across the 2022/23 campaign, with the former coming out on top as part of a historic Treble-winning season.

With the second-half of the ongoing season looming, and fixture schedules expected to intensify amid other competitions entering the latter phases, Arsenal and Manchester City are on a collision course for yet another title challenge alongside Liverpool.

However, given Manchester City’s history of putting together long winning runs en route to trophy lifts at the end of the campaign, one Arsenal man has issued a warning to his teammates over the threat that looms at the Etihad Stadium.

Speaking during a new interview with The Athletic this week, Ukraine international Oleksandr Zinchenko has admitted that Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal need to learn from “the best team in the world” in Manchester City.

“City have built this machine for a couple of years and (through most of his time at the club) it was with the same players,” Zinchenko began when discussing the successful processes undertaken by his former employers.

He continued, “Every single player knew where he needed to be with their eyes closed.

“We (Arsenal) are on the right path. I’m not saying we’re trying to copy City, but they are the best team in the world and you always need to learn from the best.”

Across five seasons at the Etihad Stadium, Oleksandr Zinchenko won a staggering four Premier League titles alongside 128 appearances for the club, becoming arguably the first player to develop from within the City Football Group’s ’emerging talent’ category into the first-team.

Zinchenko’s time with Pep Guardiola’s side came to an end in the summer of 2022, signing for Arsenal on a long-term contract for a reported transfer fee of £30 million, potentially rising to £32 million in add-ons.