Premier League managers are already feeling the strain amid cascading numbers of COVID-19 cases and mid-season injuries. Now many top bosses stand to lose stars to the Africa Cup of Nations.

Africa's greatest football show – now commonly known as AFCON – gets under way on Sunday in Cameroon.

Although the 2019 edition was held in June and July, it has historically been a January-into-February tournament and has returned to that place on the calendar.

A host of Premier League big names are hoping to make an impact during the four-week tournament, which falls slap-bang in the middle of European club campaigns, causing a major clash of competitions.

Premier League clubs certainly cannot complain of a lack of fair warning. It was June 2020 when African football chiefs decided the 2021 edition of the tournament would have to be pushed back by 12 months to a January 2022 start, in the hope the coronavirus crisis would have eased.

Here, Stats Perform takes a look at which teams from the English top flight might feel its impact the most.

Can Reds cling on in title battle?

If Liverpool lose no further ground on leaders Manchester City by the time their stars return from AFCON, then Jurgen Klopp would surely settle for that.

The 2019-20 Premier League champions have taken two points from a possible nine to leave the title as effectively City's to lose, and now Klopp is going to have to get by without Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane and Naby Keita.

Egyptian striker Salah is the Premier League's leader in goals (16) and assists (9, level with Trent Alexander Arnold) so far this season. He has taken 80 shots in 20 games (38 of these have hit the target), played 12 throughballs and created 40 chances from open play: in each of those categories he is at the top of the Premier League charts for players defined by Opta as forwards.

How do you cope without such a contribution? Having Mane on hand would help, but Mane will be turning out for Senegal, a team who, like Salah's Egypt, are firmly in the mix as serious trophy contenders. Don't expect either back at the end of the group stage.

Mane has eight Premier League goals this term, including the opener at Chelsea recently. That goal return puts Mane joint-second among African scorers in the Premier League this season, level with Watford's Emmanuel Dennis, who is not in Nigeria's squad.

Mane has played 19 throughballs and has made 23 tackles to boot, which is the seventh highest number of tackles by a forward in the league this season, a rarely mentioned attribute of his game. He does not always tackle with his elbow, either.

Keita will presumably be less of a miss, with the Guinean's Anfield contribution remaining underwhelming, but Liverpool have been so hard hit by absentees recently that to lose anybody for up to five weeks is an inconvenience.

They are at least assured of Joel Matip's presence this month. The centre-back last played for Cameroon in 2015 and has retired from international duty. That is bad news for the AFCON hosts but helps Liverpool, given Matip remains a sturdy presence, with a duel success of 69.47 per cent this season ranking him third among Premier League defenders with 10 or more appearances, and a passing accuracy of 88.89 per cent putting him eighth in that metric.

Liverpool only have two league games inked in between now and the end of AFCON, against Brentford and Crystal Palace, but the Reds also have two postponed fixtures to be slipped in somewhere along the line.

Wintertime Blues?

Pep Guardiola's Manchester City hold a 10-point lead over second-placed Chelsea, with Liverpool a point further back but possessing a game in hand on the top two. Reigning champions City have won 11 straight Premier League games and the Citizens have the resources to be able to cope with the short-term loss of Riyad Mahrez, who will captain Algeria.

Mahrez's six goals and four assists this season have come at a startling rate. Given the depth in City's squad, he does not always start, so to appreciate his contribution it is worth looking at his numbers per 90 minutes on the pitch.

The former Leicester City forward is averaging 0.64 goals and 0.43 assists per 90 minutes – impressively close to Salah's return of 0.81 and 0.45 in those categories – and is one of only four Premier League players with 10 or more appearances to average at least 1.00 goal involvements per 90 (Michael Olise 1.43, Salah 1.26, Roberto Firmino 1.24, Mahrez 1.07).

The Blues of Chelsea may have concerns over the absence of goalkeeper Edouard Mendy, given the Senegalese's stabilising influence at the back. His save percentage of 77.14 has only been beaten this season in the league by Wolves' Jose Sa (80.82) and Arsenal's Aaron Ramsdale (77.46).

Spaniard Kepa Arrizabalaga struggled in the early stages of his Chelsea career and is now the undoubted understudy.

Yet Kepa's form when given an opportunity this season has not given such cause for concern. The former Athletic Bilbao goalkeeper has been chiefly used in cup action, and he has achieved a remarkable save percentage of 81.48, suggesting that for a short run of games, he could be a perfectly able deputy.

Can an exodus to Africa affect the race for Europe?

Will fourth-placed Arsenal miss Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang? It seems unlikely now, given he was dropped and stripped of the captaincy after a disciplinary breach before heading off to join Gabon. He has not played for a month. The Gunners won five games in a row without him, including four in the league, before being unlucky to lose to Manchester City.

Cold facts tell us Arsenal have a points average of 1.9 per Premier League game when Aubameyang has started games this season, and 1.5 when he has been either a substitute or out of the team, but those figures may not be significant given the momentum Mikel Arteta's players have built in the recent absence of the 32-year-old. His continuing exile from the first team seems unlikely to cause much consternation.

For manager Arteta to lose Thomas Partey (Ghana) at this point is a blow though, with the former Atletico Madrid player having been excellent in the 2-1 defeat to City, having been slowly building up to such a performance. He had more touches, won more duels, made more tackles and played more successful passes than any other Arsenal player.

Arsenal have a big derby at Tottenham coming up on January 16, and they might feel Partey's absence that day, particularly given Spurs, who currently sit sixth, are sending no current first-teamers away to AFCON.

Splitting the north London rivals for now are West Ham, in fifth, and it will surely have hurt David Moyes to wave off Said Benrahma for a month of Algeria duty. The playmaker has five goals and four assists in the league this season, as well as making 83 ball recoveries and creating 21 chances in open play. That makes him one of only 13 players in the competition to top both 80 recoveries and 20 open-play chances created, and one of only five Premier League stars to tick both boxes and score at least five times. Crystal Palace's Wilfried Zaha, away with Ivory Coast, is another member of that small group.

Seventh-placed Manchester United will lose Eric Bailly to Ivory Coast too. But with Phil Jones back in the first team, will Bailly be missed? The former Villarreal centre-back has played just 217 minutes in the Premier League this season. United youth prospect Hannibal Mejbri is also away, in his case with Tunisia.

Further into mid-table, Wolves must find an alternative to the excellent Romain Saiss (tackle success rate 72.73 per cent) on the left side of their defence, after he joined up with Morocco. Brighton and Hove Albion powerhouse Yves Bissouma has the highest tackle success rate among midfielders to have made more than 40 such challenges in the Premier League this season (50 attempted, 35 won: 70 per cent hit rate) and he will line up for Mali after ending an international exile.

Leicester City sent away striker Kelechi Iheanacho (2 goals, 4 assists this season) for Nigeria service at a bad time for the Foxes, given injured Jamie Vardy faces several weeks out of action.

Palace are firmly in favour of players heading away to represent their countries, but the Eagles never particularly like to be without Zaha (5 goals, 1 assist, 86 dribbles). Since his return from Manchester United in August 2014, Palace have averaged 1.2 points and a 32.9 per cent win percentage with Zaha in their starting line-up, and 0.9 points and a 24.5 win percentage when he has not been in that matchday XI. The loss of Cheikhou Kouyate (80.56 per cent success rate from 36 tackles) to Senegal duty may also diminish the sturdiness of Patrick Vieira's Eagles spine.

Can Clarets cope without Cornet?

The relegation scrap seems more likely to be affected by transfer market activity than departures to AFCON.

Newcastle United and Norwich City, the league's bottom two, are sending nobody away, while fourth-bottom Watford have kept Dennis (8 goals, 5 assists) and it remains to be seen what happens to Ismaila Sarr (5 goals), who has been absent with injury of late but has headed for checks with Senegal doctors.

Burnley, who sit 18th, are seemingly the team to watch carefully here. Maxwel Cornet, now away with Ivory Coast, has scored six Premier League goals from just 10 shots on target, and Sean Dyche must find a way to make the Clarets impactful without the former Lyon man.

Manchester City assistant Rodolfo Borrell is concerned about the escalating number of coronavirus cases within the club, but is hopeful Friday's FA Cup third-round tie with Swindon Town will go ahead as planned.

The Premier League leaders confirmed on Thursday that manager Pep Guardiola and assistant Juanma Lillo are among those to have tested positive for COVID-19.

Twenty-one members of City's first-team bubble – seven players and 14 backroom staff – are isolating and will miss the trip to fourth-tier Swindon.

That match is still scheduled to go ahead as planned, though that may yet change depending on how the coronavirus situation develops ahead of the game.

Following the fixture with Swindon, City are scheduled to face second-placed Chelsea in the Premier League at the Etihad Stadium on January 15.

Borrell will take charge of City on Friday and says it is a case of taking it one game at a time.

"At the moment we have seven players unavailable and up to 14 staff, so it's quite a big outbreak," he said at a pre-match news conference on Thursday.

"Pep is fine. He has the virus but he hasn't got a lot of symptoms. We are permanently in touch. We communicate by calls and technology.

"We will play with the ones we have available. We don't have much more, but our aim is to keep playing as much as we can trying to respect all competitions.

"At this moment we can fill the team. I don't know what will happen in the following days but right now it's an easy line-up to decide.

"We will play with what we've got. We have some first-team players and some others that will come from our second team."

Asked if he is confident the Swindon game will definitely go ahead, Borrell replied: "We have prepared mentally for the game. We have to prepare for the game to happen. 

"This is what we have done until now and we'll keep going this way. If then tomorrow for whatever reason it's not possible because of more news, this is out of our reach to know.

"But right now, yes, we are prepared to play the game and we are mentally ready for it."

Borrell did not disclose which players have tested positive for coronavirus, but the outbreak is serious enough for City to have to turn to their youth squad.

City have won 13 of their last 14 matches in all competitions ahead of their first meeting with Swindon in any competition since a 2-0 FA Cup third-round win in January 2002. 

The Citizens have come out on top in 10 of their last 11 meetings with Swindon, with these matches taking place between 1988 and that most recent game 20 years ago.

Though City have progressed from their last seven FA Cup ties against sides from the fourth tier or lower, last losing against Blackpool in January 1984, Borrell is taking nothing for granted this weekend.

"You know better than me that lesser teams beat big opponents [in this competition]," he added.

"It creates a great atmosphere, everyone wants to make their village, town or city proud. There is a difference in terms of quality of players, this is obvious, but in these games everything gets very close.

"The FA Cup is very special. This is one of the titles we are most proud of achieving in the last six years. It's important to do well and get into the next stage. It will be very close, like any other tie in this competition."

Arsenal have been fined by the Football Association for failing to control their players' conduct during their 2-1 Premier League defeat to Manchester City.

League leaders City snatched a late winner through Rodri at the Emirates Stadium on New Year's Day, in a match littered with contentious moments.

Arsenal were convinced they should have had a penalty for Ederson's tackle on Martin Odegaard in the first half, while they were then left outraged that a spot-kick was awarded City's way for Granit Xhaka's challenge on Bernardo Silva.

Gabriel Magalhaes was booked for dissent during the aftermath of that decision, with the centre-back then receiving another booking two minutes later for clattering into Gabriel Jesus.

Arsenal's players surrounded referee Stuart Attwell and, for that, the club have been handed an FA fine of £20,000.

An FA statement said Arsenal had "failed to control their players in an orderly fashion".

The Gunners have accepted the fine and admitted the charge, meaning there will be no appeal.

After the game, goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale and assistant coach Albert Stuivenberg, who stood in for the isolating Mikel Arteta, questioned the consistency of the officiating, in particular the use of VAR.

Arsenal's defeat allowed West Ham and Tottenham, who both won, to close the gap to one and two points respectively.

Pep Guardiola has tested positive for coronavirus and will miss Manchester City's FA Cup tie against Swindon Town, the Premier League champions have confirmed.

Guardiola and his assistant Juanma Lillo recorded positive test results on Tuesday, and both are now isolating.

City now have 21 members of their squad – seven players and 14 backroom staff – in isolation.

Fourth-tier Swindon host City in the FA Cup third round on Friday, and assistant coach Rodolfo Borrell will take charge of the Premier League leaders.

Guardiola joins three fellow Premier League managers who have had to isolate in the last week.

Arsenal manager and Guardiola's former assistant Mikel Arteta had to watch on from home as the Gunners lost 2-1 to City on New Year's Day.

Jurgen Klopp, meanwhile, was absent for Liverpool's draw with Chelsea on Sunday while on Thursday, Burnley confirmed Sean Dyche was isolating after testing positive.

New Barcelona signing Ferran Torres thanked Pep Guardiola for his teachings as he admitted he always planned to return to LaLiga from Manchester City.

Torres was presented as a new Barca player on Monday after securing a move to Camp Nou in a deal that could be worth €65million.

The Spain international, who is recovering from a foot injury, is likely to have to wait until later this month to make his debut as Barca must offload players before registering their new forward to avoid breaching their salary cap.

Torres spent 18 months with City after joining from Valencia for around €23m (£20m), making 43 appearances in all competitions.

Among City players to feature for at least 1,000 minutes across all competitions since the start of last season, Torres boasted the highest goals per 90 minutes return (0.55) prior to his move to Barca being confirmed.

His expected goals on a per-90-minute basis of 0.44, was bettered by just Raheem Sterling (0.47) over that same period.

The 21-year-old was more of a winger at Valencia but was often deployed as a central striker for City, and it is expected he will play in a similar position under Xavi at Barca.

Torres credits Guardiola with helping him to become a versatile option, telling reporters: "I learned so much. Guardiola is one of the best coaches in the world.

"He got me to play in different positions, and I've learned to play as a striker. I leave with really beautiful memories, and they help me to face this challenge with ambition, humility and a lot of excitement.

"I always said I went to Manchester City to be able to come back one day to one of the big clubs in Spain. From the first moment Barca said they wanted me, I didn't even think about it.

"I come playing as a striker, but I always say my position is right-winger. But a player, when he is versatile, helps the coach more. That's what I intend to do.

"As long as I play, I don't mind what the position is."

Thomas Tuchel insists Chelsea will never give up hope of chasing down "winning machine" Manchester City but accepts his side have to be realistic about their title aspirations.

City opened up an 11-point lead on second-placed Chelsea at the Premier League summit with a dramatic 2-1 comeback win against Arsenal at Emirates Stadium on Saturday.

Only twice in the competition's history has a team had a bigger advantage at the end of New Year's Day – Manchester United in 1993-94 and City in 2017-18 (both 12 points).

Chelsea will attempt to close the gap when they take on Liverpool, who are one point further back in third with a game in hand, in Sunday's contest at Stamford Bridge.

The Blues enter the match on the back of a 1-1 home draw with Brighton and Hove Albion and have taken just six points from the last 12 on offer.

That disappointing run has coincided with Chelsea being without some key players due to coronavirus and injuries, and Tuchel believes his side would be far closer to City if they had a deeper squad.

"At this particular moment, that's the key advantage," he said when asked why the gap on City is so vast. 

"The second thing is they take these advantages – they're relentless, they know what it takes to produce these high point seasons over and over. 

"There's quality all over, not only in the squad but the management, how it's run, it's a winning machine. It's not only about having an advantage but making it an advantage."

City accrued 110 points in the last calendar year, compared to 83 for Chelsea and 77 for Liverpool, and have won each of their last 11 Premier League matches.
 
Chelsea led the way at the top of the division at the start of December, but hopes of a title race that will go down to the wire appear to be fading by the week.

"They're very good. We have to admit where we come from, from one year ago, and when you look at 2021 we are 20 points behind," Tuchel added. 

"We have to be careful that you are ambitious but not overambitious about catching Man City in half a year. 

"This can happen, but we have to go through this because this is part of the process of closing the gap. Everyone here wants to make it happen fast. 

"Two, three weeks ago we had a super close title race. We had three teams competing. Now we lost the edge a little bit because of circumstances we cannot influence.

"That has given City a certain advantage and belief and they are five years now of consistency with the squad they have. 

"It makes it hard. But it does not make it impossible; we will never stop believing and stop pushing but we have to be realistic."

City are going in search of their fifth Premier League title and a fourth in the past five seasons.

But Tuchel does not fear the Premier League becoming a closed shop like the Bundesliga, where Bayern Munich have dominated for the past decade.

"As long as I am here I will do nothing else but to try and make other teams underperform," the former Borussia Dortmund coach said.

"We will not stop chasing, not stop believing. That is maybe the difference to the situation right now in the Bundesliga. We have to believe, but we have to face reality. 

"It helps in life if you are dreaming and you are realistic at some point. If you look at 2021, City had something like 20 more points than us and Liverpool – we're next in that race. 

"Everything has to fall in place for us so we can produce that consistent level that City and normally Liverpool produce. There's no need to get negative, no need to lose faith. 

"The opposite. We will stay hungry. Jurgen [Klopp] did it with Dortmund, we came close [at Dortmund] but were stopped in the middle of the process. 

"Both of us know how to catch favourites, we will not stop dreaming."

Sunday's encounter will be the 17th between Tuchel and Klopp-managed sides, with the latter boasting nine wins to his compatriot's three across those previous meetings.

However, Klopp will not be present at Stamford Bridge after returning a suspected positive coronavirus test on Saturday.

Tuchel in unbeaten in three against Klopp, but he does not believe he stands a chance against the Liverpool boss when it comes down to a personality contest.

"This is maybe the most unfair question that you could ask me," he said. "Jurgen could arrive without any team and the stadium would be full! I cannot do this, I will never try. He can do it."

Manchester City picked up from where they left off in 2021 by battling to a late 2-1 win over Arsenal, extending their lead at the Premier League summit.

A Riyad Mahrez penalty and a last-gasp strike from Rodri cancelled out Bukayo Saka's first-half opener after Gabriel Magalhaes received a needless red card for the Gunners in an action-packed game – the first top-flight match of 2022.

City's 11th league win in a row means they end New Year's Day with an 11-point advantage at the top, a tally bettered by only two clubs in the competition's history on January 1 – Manchester United in 1993-94 and City themselves in 2017-18 (both 12 points).

There were also victories for Tottenham and West Ham, the London pair seeing off Watford and Crystal Palace respectively to remain in firm contention for a top-four finish.

Here, Stats Perform unpacks the pick of Opta data from Saturday's action. 

Saka's opening goal against City was only the second the Citizens have conceded in the first half of a Premier League game this season, and the first such goal they have shipped on their travels since May.

That was the England international's sixth league goal of the season and was the 36th goal scored by a player aged 21 or under for Arsenal in the English top flight since Mikel Arteta's first game on Boxing Day 2019 – eight more than any other team.

Mahrez converted a contentiously awarded penalty shortly before the hour mark at Emirates Stadium, the Algeria international scoring for a fifth game running in all competitions, and Gabriel's second yellow card – 78 seconds after his first – swung the game in City's favour.

That was Arsenal's 100th red card in the Premier League era, making them the first side to reach that milestone, with Everton (99), Newcastle United (90) and Chelsea (82) next on the list.

Rodri completed the turnaround with City's latest winning goal in a league game since May 2018 (92:28) as the Citizens made it 10 successive top-flight victories over the Gunners, an opponent Pep Guardiola has yet to lose against in the league in 12 encounters.

Watford 0-1 Tottenham: Sanchez stings Hornets in late Spurs win

Tottenham also left it late to overcome Watford and make it eight Premier League games without defeat under Antonio Conte, extending the longest unbeaten start by a Spurs boss in league competition.

Davinson Sanchez made the breakthrough with 95 minutes and 45 seconds played, with that the latest winning goal Spurs have scored in the top flight since Opta started recording such data from 2006-07.

Watford dug deep but could not quite hold on for a valuable point, meaning they have now lost more Premier League matches (nine) since Claudio Ranieri took charge in October than any other side in the division.

Sanchez's goal was his second in five Premier League matches for Spurs, which is more than he had netted in his first 108 in the competition (one), with the defender heading in from a Son Heung-min free-kick.

Watford boss Ranieri has now lost each of his last five Premier League games against Italian managers, whereas compatriot Conte has never lost against a fellow Italian in the competition in six meetings, winning all but one of those.

Crystal Palace 2-3 West Ham: Hammers survive Olise-inspired scare

Palace fell just short of pulling off a remarkable comeback as they lost a home league match on New Year's Day for the first time in their history, with this their 14th such match.

Michail Antonio's close-range finish and a Manuel Lanzini double gave West Ham a commanding three-goal lead, the latter having now scored 52 per cent of his 25 Premier League goals in London derbies (13) – the highest percentage of any player to have scored at least 20 times in the competition.

Michael Olise made a huge difference from the bench by setting up Odsonne Edouard and then scoring a second for Palace late on, making him the first Eagles player to score and assist as a substitute in the Premier League.

But the visitors held on to ensure boss David Moyes made it six straight away league wins against Palace as a manager, defeating a different coach on each occasion during that perfect run (Alan Smith, Iain Dowie, Tony Pulis, Sam Allardyce, Roy Hodgson and now Patrick Vieira).

Aaron Ramsdale and Arsenal assistant Albert Stuivenberg complained about a lack of consistency with the use of VAR in Saturday's eventful clash with Manchester City.

The Gunners felt hard done by after they were denied a penalty in the first half when Ederson was adjudged to have got the ball when he lunged in on Martin Odegaard, before City were awarded a spot-kick of their own following a VAR check shortly after the restart.

Bernardo Silva went down under the challenge of Granit Xhaka, with referee Stuart Attwell changing his decision not to award a penalty after going to the pitch-side monitor.

Riyad Mahrez coolly drilled home to cancel out Bukayo Saka's opener, before Gabriel Magalhaes was handed a second booking in swift succession for a foul on Gabriel Jesus.

Arsenal were furious at the two decisions, and their anger turned to despair late on when Rodri was on hand to prod home a dramatic winner.

While Arsenal should perhaps consider their own indiscipline – Gabriel's dismissal took the Gunners to 100 red cards in the Premier League, the first team to reach that tally – goalkeeper Ramsdale hit out at the use of the video technology.

"I am basing it on both penalties – the inconsistency of going to the screen, the referee might have ruled it out straight away when he looked at it," Ramsdale told BBC Sport.

"But it is the fact he went to look at it. Both in real time he said no penalty, but only gets told to look at one. Theirs was soft for me, but he gets told to look and has given it.

"I am at the other end of the pitch for our penalty shout. The goalkeeper comes out with his foot and he either catches him or the ball. The Bernardo one, he stood him up and it got given. Penalties are penalties, but for us it is getting told to look at the screen."

No Premier League team has seen more players sent off than Arsenal (11) since Mikel Arteta took charge of his first game on Boxing Day 2019, though the Spaniard was not on the touchline on Saturday as he has contracted COVID-19.

Stuivenberg stood in for Arteta, who was in communication with his coaching staff constantly throughout the match, and the Arsenal assistant echoed Ramsdale's complaints.

"We are very frustrated with the outcome if you play a game like this against one of the best teams in the world. At the end to have zero points is frustrating because we should have won the game," he told BBC Sport.

"I think it [should have been] a penalty [to Arsenal] but I am looking for consistency. We have VAR in place so why not check yourself as a referee? That did not happen so it is disappointing."

Reflecting on Gabriel's sending off, with the bookings coming in the space of 78 seconds – the first one having been for scuffing up the penalty spot before Mahrez's spot-kick – Stuivenberg conceded Arsenal showed a lack of composure.

"It is something we have to learn, we have young players in the team and have to control our emotion," he said.

"I am not sure the first yellow is because of that [scuffing the penalty spot], I cannot ask the question to the referee now. If you are on a yellow you have to be smarter."

Rodri says Manchester City demonstrated their "champions' personality" as they snatched a dramatic 2-1 victory over 10-man Arsenal.

The Premier League leaders left it at the Emirates, the Spain international striking in the third minute of stoppage time to send Pep Guardiola's side 11 points clear at the summit of the table.

The contest had appeared to be heading for a stalemate after Riyad Mahrez equalised from the penalty spot to cancel out Bukayo Saka's first-half effort.

Despite dominating possession (70.9 per cent), City were far from their best, registering just two shots on target from 15 attempts. 

Nevertheless, Rodri believes he and his team-mates reaped the rewards for their persistence, while he also paid tribute to Arsenal's display in the absence of boss Mikel Arteta following his positive COVID-19 test.

"This kind of game, you always have two or three in a season," he told BT Sport.

"They're an unbelievable team; they show why they're in that position. The way they grow with Mikel is huge, massive.

"They did a good game but fortunately, we saw our champions' personality. I've learned from previous years you have to push always, no matter what happens. 

"We were 1-0 down in the break. Suddenly, things change. We didn't do a great game, but we pushed; never dropped, and always thought it was possible."

Arsenal were on a five-match winning streak at the Emirates, keeping a clean sheet in each of their four most recent outings on home soil.

The Gunners were unlucky not to quickly retake the lead after Mahrez's equaliser, with Nathan Ake just about clearing off the line following a mix-up between Aymeric Laporte and Ederson, before Gabriel Magalhaes was given his marching orders for a second bookable offence.

And City boss Guardiola acknowledged that those fine margins proved crucial for his side, who he felt lacked energy during their third match in the space of six days.

"They [Arsenal] were better," he said. "We faced a team who have struggled to be in top four and start the season at the bottom. Now, they are in the top four. 

"They had six or seven days since their last game at Norwich; we had three days since Brentford. 

"We didn't have energy. In the second half, one minute changed with the penalty, one minute the [near] own goal and the sending off. 

"Sometimes, the coin falls on your side, sometimes the other side. We know how much it means to win at the Emirates at the moment and the good team they are."

Rodri struck a stoppage-time winner as Manchester City came from behind to snatch a dramatic 2-1 victory over 10-man Arsenal.

In the absence of Mikel Arteta following a positive COVID-19 test, Bukayo Saka put Albert Stuivenberg's Gunners ahead at the Emirates with a neat finish in the 31st minute.

However, Riyad Mahrez equalised from the penalty spot just before Gabriel Magalhaes was dismissed for a second bookable offence.

And there was to be one final twist in the third minute of stoppage time, as Rodri prodded home to give Pep Guardiola's side an 11th straight league win.

Barcelona are in the market to bolster their squad in January.

The Spanish giants have financial challenges to overcome.

But after an ordinary start to the season, they are ready to get busy to build Xavi a stronger squad.

TOP STORY – BARCELONA TO MOVE FOR LAPORTE

Barcelona could move for another Manchester City star, with The Sun reporting that the Blaugrana want to sign Spain international Aymeric Laporte.

The defender has lost his starting spot to John Stones and is said to be unsettled at City.

Barcelona announced a deal to sign Ferran Torres from City this week.

ROUND-UP

- Juventus have no interest in a potential swap deal with Barcelona whereby Alvaro Morata would trade places with Memphis Depay, reports Football Italia.

- Newcastle United are set to complete their first piece of January transfer business by signing Lille defender Sven Botman, claims the Mail.

- Liverpool are interested in Arsenal winger Bukayo Saka, claims the Express. Saka is contracted to the Gunners until 2024.

- Liverpool have also pitched a contract offer to Milan midfielder Franck Kessie, reports Ansa.

Ferran Torres considers joining Barcelona from Manchester City a "huge step" in his career and is confident he can continue improving under Xavi at Camp Nou.

Barca confirmed on Tuesday that an agreement is in place to sign Torres from City for a reported fee of up to €65million (£54.75m) when the January transfer window officially opens.

The Spain international will be presented on January 3, but a foot injury sustained in October will delay his debut until later in the month.

Torres has spent the past 18 months at the Etihad Stadium after joining from Valencia for a fee of around €23m (£20m) and made an impact across his 43 appearances for City.

Among City players to feature for at least 1,000 minutes across all competitions since the start of last season, Torres boasts the highest goals per 90 minutes return (0.55).

His expected goals on a per-90-minute basis of 0.44, meanwhile, is bettered by just Raheem Sterling (0.47) over that same period.

The 21-year-old is hoping to bring that type of attacking threat to Barcelona, who have netted 29 goals in LaLiga this term – 12 fewer than league-leading Real Madrid.

Speaking to Barcelona's official website, Torres said: "I am very happy to join Barca. 

"I hope to continue growing as a footballer and person and to help Barca continue to be one of the best teams in the world.

"I'm very excited to be here. It's a huge step in my career, to continue growing, scoring goals. I am looking forward to joining.

"I can bring versatility; I can play in the three positions up front. I want to help score goals, give assists and also help defend."

Torres joins a Barca side in seventh place in LaLiga after a poor start to the campaign that saw Ronald Koeman sacked and replaced by Xavi in early November.

Xavi has had a mixed start to his tenure, having won three, drawn three and lost two of his first eight games, but Torres is excited to play under the former midfield star.

"He had a formidable career as a player," Torres said. "As a coach he is starting, but he is formidable. He is going to help me grow and improve."

Barcelona on Tuesday confirmed they have reached an agreement to sign Ferran Torres from Manchester City for a reported fee of €65million.

The Spain international returns to LaLiga following an 18-month spell in the Premier League and has signed a deal until June 2027.

Barca are said to be paying an initial €55m (£46.7m) and as much as €10m (£8.5m) in add-ons.

The Catalan giants revealed a €1billion release clause has been inserted in Torres' contract and he will be officially unveiled at Camp Nou on January 3.

City initially spent roughly €23m (£20m) to sign Torres from Valencia in 2020, meaning they have more than doubled their money on a player who has never truly been considered a first-choice starter.

Barca had been linked with Torres in pre-season but their crippling financial state meant transfer outlays were implausible.

The club's debts have topped €1.4billion this year and as a result of their financial performance, they saw their LaLiga salary cap slashed by €280m to just €97m, hence their inability to retain Lionel Messi.

That saw Barca slip from having the second-highest wage limit last season to seventh in 2021-22.

Speculation ahead of Torres' signing led to many pondering how Barca can suddenly afford such a significant transfer fee so soon, but reports indicate they recently took out a significant loan to ensure they can.

Torres' arrival means new coach Xavi has the type of young, dynamic attacker he had been after, with the 21-year-old capable of playing through the middle and out on the right, where he was most-frequently used at Valencia.

Since Xavi's return to Barca as head coach, he has spoken regularly about a desire to play with classic wingers, while his reluctance to use Luuk de Jong as the focal point of their attack has suggested a preference for a quick and energetic central striker – Torres fits the bill on both counts.

Yet he leaves City as something of an enigma, having only made 15 Premier League starts in 2020-21, and this season Torres has managed just four appearances in the top flight due to a foot injury he sustained on international duty in October.

As much as it feels he has left City before the Premier League truly got to know him, in his limited time Torres has made an impact on the pitch for City.

Among City players to feature for at least 1,000 minutes across all competitions since the start of last season, Torres' 0.55 goals per 90 minutes is the highest and none of his strikes have been from the penalty spot.

His average of 2.8 shots (per 90) is third only to Kevin De Bruyne (3.3) and Riyad Mahrez (3.2), and his expected goals on a per-90-minute basis of 0.44 is bettered by just Raheem Sterling (0.47), showing that Torres' high goals frequency comes from being a consistent threat.

Torres' 1.1 chances created on average is well down the list at City, however. While this may partly reflect the fact he has featured as a central striker often, perhaps greater productivity in this area would have seen City put up more of a fight to keep him.

Nevertheless, the signing represents something of a coup for a Barcelona that just a few months ago was incapable of paying for players of such a calibre.

Barcelona on Tuesday confirmed they have reached an agreement to sign Ferran Torres from Manchester City for a reported fee of €65million.

The Spain international returns to LaLiga following an 18-month spell in the Premier League and has signed a deal until June 2027.

Barca are said to be paying an initial €55m (£46.7m) and as much as €10m (£8.5m) in add-ons.

City initially spent roughly €23m (£20m) to sign Torres from Valencia in 2020, meaning they have more than doubled their money on a player who has never truly been considered a first-choice starter.

Barca had been linked with Torres in pre-season but their crippling financial state meant transfer outlays were implausible.

The club's debts have topped €1.4billion this year and as a result of their financial performance, they saw their LaLiga salary cap slashed by €280m to just €97m, hence their inability to retain Lionel Messi.

That saw Barca slip from having the second-highest wage limit last season to seventh in 2021-22.

Speculation ahead of Torres' signing led to many pondering how Barca can suddenly afford such a significant transfer fee so soon, but reports indicate they recently took out a significant loan to ensure they can.

Torres' arrival means new coach Xavi has the type of young, dynamic attacker he had been after, with the 21-year-old capable of playing through the middle and out on the right, where he was most-frequently used at Valencia.

Since Xavi's return to Barca as head coach, he has spoken regularly about a desire to play with classic wingers, while his reluctance to use Luuk de Jong as the focal point of their attack has suggested a preference for a quick and energetic central striker – Torres fits the bill on both counts.

Yet he leaves City as something of an enigma, having only made 15 Premier League starts in 2020-21, and this season Torres has managed just four appearances in the top flight due to a foot injury he sustained on international duty in October.

As much as it feels he has left City before the Premier League truly got to know him, in his limited time Torres has made an impact on the pitch for City.

Among City players to feature for at least 1,000 minutes across all competitions since the start of last season, Torres' 0.55 goals per 90 minutes is the highest and none of his strikes have been from the penalty spot.

His average of 2.8 shots (per 90) is third only to Kevin De Bruyne (3.3) and Riyad Mahrez (3.2), and his expected goals on a per-90-minute basis of 0.44 is bettered by just Raheem Sterling (0.47), showing that Torres' high goals frequency comes from being a consistent threat.

Torres' 1.1 chances created on average is well down the list at City, however. While this may partly reflect the fact he has featured as a central striker often, perhaps greater productivity in this area would have seen City put up more of a fight to keep him.

Nevertheless, the signing represents something of a coup for a Barcelona that just a few months ago was incapable of paying for players of such a calibre.

Paulo Dybala could be the subject of an audacious swoop from Juventus' Serie A rivals Inter.

The Argentine forward has a contract at the Allianz Stadium until June 2022 and previous reports had suggested a renewal was a mere formality.

However, it seems the situation is not quite as simple as once thought.

TOP STORY – INTER TO PLAY THE LONG GAME WITH DYBALA?

Prominent Italian journalist Tancredi Palmeri explained there is the possibility that Juve's pursuit of Fiorentina striker Dusan Vlahovic may open up the opportunity for the Dybala move to take place.

Inter have had their financial troubles, which led to the exits of Romelu Lukaku and Achraf Hakimi in the last window.

But the Nerazzurri are attempting to offload huge earner Alexis Sanchez, which could free up funds to bring Dybala to San Siro.

ROUND-UP

- Real Madrid are admirers of Chelsea full-back Reece James, according to El Nacional. The Catalan publication says Los Blancos could offer the Blues the chance to re-sign Eden Hazard in order to secure a deal.

- Antonio Rudiger looks far more likely to leave Stamford Bridge for the Santiago Bernabeu. AS reports PSG and Bayern Munich are also interested in the Germany centre-back, although the defender wants to join Madrid.

- Sticking with Madrid, and out-of-favour midfielder Dani Ceballos looks certain to depart the capital. A return to Real Betis is being touted by Mundo Deportivo.

- In the Premier League, Anthony Martial's long-term future at Manchester United remains up in the air. The France forward has told interim boss Ralf Rangnick he wants to depart Old Trafford, according to Goal.

- Over in the blue half of Manchester, Ferran Torres' switch from City to Barcelona is set to move a step closer with Sport reporting a medical is booked in for Monday.

- Ainsley Maitland-Niles is set for a fresh start in Serie A, so say Goal. The versatile midfielder is said to be on the cusp of securing a loan switch to Jose Mourinho's Roma.

- Napoli have yet to tie down Lorenzo Insigne to fresh terms. Links to Inter and Tottenham have run hot and cold, but MLS outfit Toronto are thought to be serious about the forward, offering him a €5million per year deal, say Calciomercato.com.