Man City will be OUT of the title race if they lose to Arsenal

Chris Sutton has claimed Man City will be out of the title race if they lose to Arsenal this weekend.

Pep Guardiola's side take on the Gunners in a crunch top of the table clash at the Etihad on Sunday afternoon.

Mikel Arteta's outfit are currently first and could go four points clear of their rivals with a win, while they also have a goal difference that is 11 goals superior.

And, speaking on Mail Sport's It's All Kicking Off podcast, former Premier League winner Sutton felt City - who are chasing a fourth successive top flight title - would be out of the race if they suffered a defeat.

'Their record against the top five teams this season...' he said to co-host Ian Ladyman. 'Man City have three points at this moment.

'You look at Arsenal, they have eight points, Liverpool have six points and I wouldn't have necessarily thought that.

'But now is the time that City have to click into gear. If they lose this game, it will be curtains for them.'

However, Ladyman disagreed with Sutton, although he insisted he understood his co-host's thinking.

He responded: 'I don't agree with that by the way. But I take your point.

'It would be a huge advantage for Arsenal (if they won).'

The Gunners suffered a damaging 4-1 defeat at the Etihad in April last year in a game that was dubbed a title shootout at the time, meaning they haven't won away to City since January 2015.

And when discussing the potential implications of the game, Sutton outlined how big an opportunity this is for Arsenal and claimed Guardiola's side are yet to reach the heights of last season.

Sutton added: 'You make the point about Arsenal's record at City not being great, but why wouldn't they go there and be bullish?

'They're top of the league, they've scored the most goals,