Manchester City have always been artists under Pep Guardiola, painting beautiful pictures on the pitch.

No doubt as to what was the dominant angry shout of the past week: “That was never a pen!” (Well, leaving aside Neymar’s dad yelling at King Eric.)

Arsenal will play their second leg at the Emirates on a Wednesday at 5pm.

West Ham say they will be able to increase the capacity of the London Stadium to 66,000 after resolving a legal row with its landlord.

Petr Cech has given another indication that he is planning to stay at Arsenal by declaring himself ready to step up and be one of the club’s five captains.

Atletico Madrid’s creaking Estadio Vicente Calderon Stadium was not a ground any opponent fancied visiting, especially on big Champions League nights when the old concrete bowl literally shook with emotion and noise.

Liverpool assistant manager Zeljko Buvac yesterday became the latest name to be linked with the soon-to-be vacant manager’s job at Arsenal.

Jose Mourinho regrets the “little negative episodes” with Arsene Wenger over the years. He suspects his Arsenal counterpart feels the same, as the old foes prepare to do battle tomorrow, for perhaps the last time.

Five things we learned

After spending 22 years in the spotlight as Arsenal manager there is a great sense of intrigue as to what comes next for Arsene Wenger.

Arsene Wenger’s top ten outstanding achievements.

In a week where European football has been dominated by dramatic comebacks and shocks, Arsenal were given an almighty scare by CSKA Moscow as they booked a place in the Europa League semi-final.

Arsenal 3 Southampton 2: Arsene Wenger’s selection gamble paid off in dramatic fashion as he made seven changes to his starting line-up and scrambled a late victory to make it six wins in a row after a losing run during which both he and his team were written off.

Danny Welbeck has escaped retrospective action for his alleged dive during Arsenal's 3-1 win against AC Milan last week, UEFA has confirmed.

Pep Guardiola has paid an emotional tribute to the hierarchy at Manchester City after lifting his first silverware with the club, thanking owner Sheikh Mansour for sticking by him in a trophy-less first season.

There was a time in my career when even as a Tottenham fan I felt that Arsene Wenger was a bit special. Today I feel, probably like Wenger feels, that he is oh so close from putting it all together. The trouble is that he just can’t find the right formula, writes The Secret Footballer.

“Over the last few years, the rivalry between the two sets of fans has become intolerably hateful.” 

Arsene Wenger has called on Mesut Ozil to be the leader of his new Arsenal generation.

Brighton 0 - Chelsea 4: Chelsea’s 4-0 victory at Brighton at the weekend has quietened the critics who suggested there was a crisis building at Stamford Bridge but it hasn’t ended speculation about their search for a striker after manager Antonio Conte challenged Michy Batshuayi to fill the void – but also left the door open for him to leave.

Manchester United are looking to bolster their strike force in the January transfer window and are reported to have made inquiries about signing Jamie Vardy from Leicester City and Javier Hernandez from West Ham, according to the Telegraph.

Arsenal 2 Chelsea 2: So much for the Premier League schedule killing players.

It was a case of Happy Christmas, love from the Premier League. 

With Christmas still to come, it’s way too early to be talking about a golden era for the Premier League but you would have to say that the signs are certainly more encouraging than they have been in a long time.

City, who are eight points clear at the top of the table, are are bidding for a 14th successive Premier League win, an achievement which would be a record for a single season.

Jose Mourinho is treating striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic with kid gloves by keeping the striker out of tonight’s Champions League clash with CSKA Moscow as Sunday’s top-of-the-table clash against Manchester City looms large, writes Rory Dollard.

Liam Brady previews today’s Premier League meeting of Arsenal and Man Utd in the context of the contrasting fortunes and football philosophies of rival managers Arsene Wenger and Jose Mourinho.

Our man inside the game is used to seeing big players step things up as a transfer window approaches.

Arsene Wenger has told Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino that his side must overcome “the fear” of not winning a trophy if they are to earn silverware in the future.

Thierry Henry believes Arsenal’s dramatic opening-day victory over Leicester showed signs of stagnation, and that no progress had been made over the summer.

Arsenal 4 Leicester 3

Arsenal defeated Chelsea on penalties in the Premier League curtain raiser but what did the result tell us? 

Arsene Wenger may have finally put pen to paper on a new two-year contract at Arsenal yesterday, but if he believes such a move will spell an end to unrest among fans he will have to think again.

Alexis Sanchez was Arsenal’s hero yet again as he kept his team’s hopes of a top-four place alive with a nervy victory over already-relegated Sunderland which provided a snapshot of the in-between land in which Arsene Wenger’s side reside in right now.

Jose Mourinho took another swipe at Arsene Wenger by insisting the Frenchman's poor record against him is "not normal" after Arsenal's 2-0 victory over Manchester United.

Tottenham beware: a new ground means new gripes, writes Brenda O’Brien.

Arsene Wenger insists it will take more than one great season for Spurs to justifiably say the balance of power in North London has shifted, writes Chris Hatherall, but it certainly felt like the needle moved significantly at White Hart Lane on an afternoon which could have implications way beyond the end of this campaign.

Arsenal 5 Lincoln 0: The fall-out from that numbing 5-1 defeat to Bayern Munich in the Champions League was so great that Arsene Wenger had to watch a video of the game three times just to come to terms with what he had seen.

On the Saturday, Lincoln City became the first non-league club in 103 years to reach the quarter-finals of the FA Cup. 20,000 people. Turf Moor. Premier League opposition.

Another protest by Arsenal fans who want to see Arsene Wenger replaced has been scheduled - with the manager admitting the opinion of supporters will have a bearing on whether he stays.

A four-goal comeback in the Champions League sounds like fantasy football, and maybe it is — but Carlo Ancelotti has been on the receiving end.

To borrow a famous line from a GAA match report printed in this paper, Bayern Munich appear to have driven the final nail in Arsene Wenger’s coffin of hope, writes Larry Ryan.

It’s the 55th minute at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday, September 24, 2016, Arsenal are leading Chelsea 3-0 and the title is about to be decided.