Manchester City fans mocked Arsenal with a viral water bottle gesture at Stamford Bridge after the Gunners' defeat to Bournemouth left their Premier League title hopes in jeopardy
A fan was captured on camera mocking Arsenal
A fan was captured on camera mocking Arsenal(Image: Sky Sports)
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Manchester City are firmly in the title race and it appears their supporters believe they're on course to lift the Premier League trophy once again after they demolished Chelsea. The travelling contingent at Stamford Bridge couldn't resist taunting rivals Arsenal, as one supporter held up a water bottle bearing Gunners branding and mimicked taking a sip.
The implication was unmistakable: they anticipate Arsenal will squander their advantage and bottle it. Following Mikel Arteta's team's defeat to Bournemouth on Saturday, that's precisely the notion City will want lingering in Arsenal's minds with six fixtures left to play.
The viral clip accumulated over 700,000 views on X within an hour, as Arsenal's championship aspirations come under scrutiny. Despite currently trailing in the standings, City have served notice of their own ambitions.
Pep Guardiola's charges delivered their own statement as they comfortably dispatched Chelsea 3-0 and cut the deficit to six points. City welcome Arsenal next week, and victory there, combined with capitalising on their match in hand, will probably see the club overtake Arsenal at the summit.
Nico O'Reilly broke the deadlock before strikes from Marc Guehi and Jeremy Doku sparked scenes of delight amongst City's faithful on Sunday. Arsenal jibes were always going to feature amongst their thoughts.
While City remain laser-focused on their title charge, Arteta faced tough questions over whether the momentum in the division was beginning to shift. "We know what is at stake, and the fact that as a club we haven't done it for so long is a reason for that, it talks about the difficulty," he said following the Bournemouth defeat.
"But I just want to focus on the things that we can control, dominate and we have done. It's not like we have to do a lot of new things that we haven't done, no, let's keep doing a lot of it.
"Or almost all the things that we've done for nine months, because that's what has taken us all the way there, and on Wednesday, I saw a lot of them, and today, we've gone back.
LONDON, ENGLAND - APRIL 12: Manchester City's Jeremy Doku with a shot in the first half during the Premier League match between Chelsea and Manchester City at Stamford Bridge on April 12, 2026 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Rob Newell - CameraSport via Getty Images)
Manchester City earned a comfortable win(Image: Rob Newell - CameraSport, CameraSport via Getty Images)
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"So we need to learn, we need to be very critical to ourselves, and then pick ourselves up, because on Wednesday we have a big one coming up."
Former Manchester City defender and lifelong Arsenal supporter Micah Richards believes City's faithful have every reason to feel optimistic. "It's on," he declared on Sky Sports.
"They have got the win. Now next week is humungous. I cannot wait!
"The fans believe and they have not stopped believing, the away fans are brilliant. I'm not saying they are going to go and win it but they have given themselves a chance and that's all they can do."
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