Man City and Arsenal set for huge showdown as fixture truth clear amid Pep Guardiola grumble

Manchester City and Arsenal face season-defining fixtures over the next few weeks as they build towards the Carabao Cup final

Manchester City and Arsenal go head to head on Wednesday night in what could be one of the final times the two teams kick off in the Premier League at the same time on the same day.

The pair are both in action on Wednesday evening with City hosting Nottingham Forest and Arsenal on the road at Brighton. Both games are 7.30pm kick offs and kickstart a huge period for the two title challengers across four competitions.

The pair conclude March by facing off in the Carabao Cup final at Wembley on March 22 and before then have FA Cup fifth round ties and Champions League last-16 matches. The next few weeks will define seasons and shape the final weeks of the campaign.

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City have certainly got the tougher fixtures - Newcastle United away in the FA Cup is a significantly stiffer test than League One side Mansfield - while Real Madrid might not the force of old but still possess the European pedigree and world class superstars that Arsenal's Champions League opponents Bayer Leverkusen don't.

Guardiola knows the challenge facing his side against the La Liga giants, and after the weekend win over Leeds United, took aim at the schedule with the cup tie at Newcastle taking place at 8pm on a Saturday ahead of the trip to Spain next Wednesday.

"We have three days (until Nottingham Forest)", said Guardiola. "And then after in the FA Cup, thank you so much for letting us play at 8pm instead of 3pm so we have less recover to play Real Madrid," said Guardiola.

"So again thank you so much. This is what you have to live [with], but you have to deal with that."

Guardiola's gripe is and often has been that English football doesn't do enough to help Premier League sides competing in European competitions. And while the late night Saturday start at St James' is not ideal, it does offer three clear days between matches, something Guardiola has called for in the past.

Indeed City's fixture list is very similar to Arsenal's over the coming weeks. The two teams play their six March fixtures on the same day as each other and so have similar recovery times.

The Gunners trip to Mansfield in the FA Cup is a 12.45pm start but their Champions League tie in Germany against Leverkusen is an earlier kick off with the match getting under way at 5.45pm next Wednesday. That does give Mikel Arteta's side a few extra hours in between games while the cup trip to a third tier opponent offers greater chance to rest and rotate and still progress to the quarter-finals.

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Arsenal then play Everton in an early evening game before hosting Leverkusen in the Champions League return at 8pm, again an extra recovery period of a few hours ahead of a European fixture.

Guardiola's complaint is a general one rather than comparing City to Arsenal, but the Gunners will get eight extra hours off compared to the Blues before their respective last-16 Champions League fixtures.

It's a small point but in a season of fine margins is still worth noting. City know the next few weeks is kinder to Arsenal in terms of scheduling and cup draw opposition, but as Guardiola noted last week: “As much as you play with the big teams, you’re a better team."

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