'They parked a double-decker bus' - Sam Allardyce aims sly dig at Arsenal tactics vs Man City

Former Premier League manager Sam Allardyce has praised the tactics used by Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta — and named the player who is key to the club's title race.

The Gunners moved back to the top of the Premier League on Wednesday night with a 2-0 win over Luton Town. The victory followed the goalless draw with title rivals Manchester City at the weekend.

The stalemate at the Etihad Stadium saw Arsenal fall behind Liverpool in the table. Should the Anfield club defeat Sheffield United on Thursday night then Arsenal would again fall back to second place in the standings.

After the draw with Man City, Arteta's tactics were met with mixed reviews with some offering praise and others being critical. Allardyce, who was most recently managing in the Premier League with Leeds United at the end of last season, believes Arteta got his tactics right in the Gunners' trip to the Etihad.

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«People are calling Arsenal’s performance at the Etihad a masterclass in defending – it wasn’t,» said Allardyce on the William Hill and Footy Accumulators’ podcast, No Tippy Tappy Football.

«Mikel Arteta clearly asked the team simply not to lose. A point away at Manchester City is valuable and that is what they set out to get. They parked the bus – a double-decker bus at that!

»Everybody was looking forward to it being an entertaining game and it wasn’t, but I have to say that doesn’t happen very often anymore. I have to give Arteta full marks for the way they went about nullifying Manchester City.

«He is there to win the league this time. He blew it last year, he