Arsenal await Man City relegation verdict with triple benefit but face Mikel Arteta exit concern

Arsenal fans have been in a state of unrest over Manchester City’s investigation into the alleged 115 rule breaches and the impact it could have on both them and their Premier League title rivals. After Everton received a points deduction, it suddenly brought more attention to the reality of the potential implications should the club be found guilty.

Man City reportedly face a trial in the autumn of next year with an outcome slated not to be known until potentially as late as 2025. We previously discussed how the sheer volume of alleged breaches would certainly entail a lengthy process.

However, Altindex.com’s latest odds on the outcome suggest that the likeliest outcome remains neither relegation nor points deduction as punishment. Points deductions and relegation odds are far less likely and from an Arsenal perspective it seems they should continue preparations with their current rivals remaining as such into the long term.

However, in a world in which the suggested 5/1 chance that relegation does indeed happen, there are of course benefits worth theorising on. The initial one is of course the most obvious and the fact with City out of the picture for at least a season the title becomes far more achievable.

I have maintained that if your expectation is that Arsenal should win the league whilst having Man City as your favourites for it this is a contradiction. However, with City out of the picture, that expectation suddenly becomes a far more realistic one.

If City were to go down, it would be interesting to then see who might leave the club. Would the champions be able to hold onto their top talent, would they stay for what you’d expect to be a single campaign in the second tier?

Arsenal face anxious Man City points