The former City duo have been crucial for Mikel Arteta’s table-toppers, but that doesn’t mean it wasn’t the correct call to let them go in 2022
At a number of points this season, Manchester City’s decision to sell Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko to Arsenal looked like a fatal miscalculation. When City decided to move both players on in the summer and the Gunners came in with attractive offers, no one at the club could have imagined that Mikel Arteta’s side would become title contenders the next season.
Little did Pep Guardiola and the City board know it, but they were fuelling their greatest rivals for the Premier League crown.
The striker and left-back have been among Arsenal’s two most important players in their surprise title bid, and both will line up in Wednesday’s title showdown at the Etihad Stadium.
If they can inspire Arsenal to victory and send them eight points clear at the top of the table, City are likely to be criticised for gifting the Gunners two of their most influential players.
But whatever happens on Wednesday and at the end of the season, City were right to let the players leave.
