Jamie Carragher's backhanded compliment exposes Arsenal truth and proves Man City right

Manchester City's ruthless streak and Arsenal's preservation process could prove pivotal in the Premier League title race, believes Jamie Carragher.

City have opened up a five-point gap to Arsenal after just nine games of the season following the Gunners 2-2 draw with Liverpool on Sunday. Arteta's side twice led but couldn't hold on to the advantage and ultimately tried to protect what they had at 2-1 rather than seeking a third goal.

It prompted Roy Keane to question the Gunners' mentality and while Arsenal are unbeaten in six games against City and Liverpool, they have only won two and coughed up points elsewhere in falling short to Pep Guardiola's side in the last two years. And Carragher feels Arsenal's set-up and propensity to protect rather than go for the jugular - a view shared and voiced by many City players - means former Etihad assistant Arteta is more Jose Mourinho than Guardiola.

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"The interesting thing about watching Arsenal, and I have been thinking about this for a long time, because Mikel Arteta worked with Pep Guardiola we have been thinking that he is a Pep Guardiola disciple," Carragher said, speaking to Sky Sports. "But if you think about the two most successful managers in the last 15 years then you have Pep Guardiola over here and Jose Mourinho over here.

"Mikel Arteta is slowing morphing into a Jose Mourinho type of manager. Nobody really thought that was going to happen. Today, they retreated in the second half.

"This is not a criticism, this is an observation of where Arsenal are at as a team. Maybe it is because Arteta has looked at his attacking players and thought 'we're not as good as Manchester City, we have to win the league by being the best team defensively'. And that's what they were last season and possibly still are.

"But this idea that Arsenal play great football and he is a Pep Guardiola man, he is not. Just look at the players going down today, the secrecy before the game about who was fit and who wasn't. It's all out of the Jose Mourinho playbook."

City's internal view of Arsenal, often voiced externally by players in recent months, is that the Gunners don't have the ruthlessness required to claim the title.

Rodri said last season that Arsenal's approach at the Etihad convinced the City squad they could overhaul the Gunners, while after a bad-tempered clash between the sides this season, Manuel Akanji criticised Arteta's side for being happy with a point and Bernardo Silva mocked Arsenal's lack of trophies.