The table's top two sides were due to meet this week in gameweek 12, although few would have anticipated the importance of the game when the initial fixtures list was revealed.
After a phenomenal start to the season, Mikel Arteta's youthful Gunners find themselves four points clear at the top of the Premier League as the mid-season World Cup break draws nearer.
Manchester City and Spurs are hot on their tails but it is Pep Guardiola's side who are seen as the greatest threat to Arsenal achieving their first league title since the 2003-04 season.
On paper, the timing could not have been more perfect. Big results against the likes of Liverpool and north London rivals Tottenham has seen Arsenal emerge as genuine contenders, and a rare slip-up for City in a feisty affair against Jurgen Klopp's Reds meant that plenty would now be riding on the clash.
Alas, fans will have to wait a little longer to see the two sides compete against one another - but why was the fixture pushed back, and who (if anyone) does the postponement benefit most?
Why has Arsenal v Man City been postponed?
The fixture was put on the backburners in September in order to make room for Arsenal's re-arranged Europa League fixture with PSV Eindhoven.
The north London side were originally meant to play PSV on 15 September. However, the fixture could not go ahead as planned due to national concerns over police resources resulting from the death of Queen Elizabeth II.
Arsenal were told they had until the start of November to complete their Europa League group game fixtures or else they would have to forfeit the match and points. Both Manchester City and the Premier League agreed to postpone their fixture so that Arsenal could continue their European exploits - even though they have since all but qualified for the next stages anyway.
A statement from the Premier League said: "The Premier League has agreed with UEFA to postpone Arsenal FC's Premier League match with Manchester City FC, originally due to be played on 19 October, to allow for Arsenal FC's re-arranged UEFA Europa League game with PSV Eindhoven.
"Arsenal FC v PSV Eindhoven, originally scheduled to be played on Thursday 15 September, will now be played on Thursday 20 October 18:00."
The Premier League tie has yet to receive a confirmed re-arranged date, and it remains unclear as to whether the game will take place before or after the winter World Cup in Qatar.
Who benefits most from the postponement?
While there are no suggestions of any wrongdoing in having the fixture moved the question begs to be asked: which side will be the happier of the two right now?
Given the manner of Man City's last result - an ill-tempered 1-0 loss to Liverpool that saw both VAR and a late Mo Salah (30) goal send Guardiola into meltdown mode - the Citizens would have no doubt been chomping at the bit to put things right.
Sacrificing all three points for the first time this season allowed Arsenal to put some breathing space between the two sides at the top, and City - who have not lost back-to-back league games since the 2018/19 season - would have seen playing Arsenal as the perfect way to bounce back and restore the team's dented morale.
Arteta, having worked so closely under Guardiola at City, will no doubt be aware of his former employer's 'bouncebackability', as well as having a valuable bit of insight into the mental approach Guardiola will have likely instilled into his squad of elite players.
While clearly not one to shy away from a challenge, there may be an ounce of relief in the back of Arteta's mind that there is less risk to their position and more time to spend ahead of their rivals, at least in the short-term.
The flipside being that a home victory for the Londoners would have amounted to a huge three points in the grander scheme of things. It would have created a seven-point gap at the top going into a long World Cup break, something not many would have predicted back in August, but a strong position nonetheless and something Arteta would fight tooth and nail to retain going into January.
