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Mikel Arteta, Pep Guardiola and When the Gap Closes Between Student and Teacher

On the one hand, there's the genius with two Champions League crowns and eight league titles to his name. On the other, there's his former assistant, just 10 months into his managerial career but already making a positive impression, already with an FA Cup title to his name. Saturday’s meeting of Manchester City and Arsenal is Pep Guardiola and Mikel Arteta's third duel as managers, but it is the first when the question of whether the pupil might soon overtake the master is beginning–quietly, for now–to be asked.

When Arteta took charge of Arsenal, the club was locked in a downward spiral.