LONDON -- Imagine how good Arsenal could be if Mikel Arteta gets the financial backing he called for this week. The Spaniard used the buoyancy created by Wednesday's unexpected victory over Premier League champions Liverpool to highlight an "enormous" gap to the top two in England, suggesting "there is no magic" to squad improvement beyond heavy investment.
What Arteta managed here wasn't far short. There aren't many people in world football with a more intimate knowledge of Pep Guardiola's tactical approach than the 38-year-old, given he spent more than three years as a coach under him at City, yet few thought the apprentice would defeat the master given the tools at each man's disposal.