FOOTBALL fans do not usually have sympathy for other clubs, but the neutrals among us might just be a little understanding when it comes to Arsenal’s plight. Top of the table virtually all season after three successive runners-up spots, they have barely put a foot wrong for much of the campaign, only to find a surge from Manchester City, the ultimate long-distance runners, has changed the shape of the Premier League title race. The matter is no longer in Arsenal’s hands alone, somebody has to stop City, who after beating Mikel Arteta’s team have cut the margin to three points with a game in hand. It could not have gone more wrong for Arsenal – City have switched the narrative from “what if?” to “what about that, then?”.
For months now, the media, the fans and opponents have been talking of nothing else but Arsenal’s ability to keep their head in the closing weeks of the season. It almost feels that they have been talked into failing, although nobody should tag a year in which they could end with a Champions League final and a trip to Wembley as outright failure. But Arsenal are desperate to win the Premier League and end the longest spell in the club’s history without a league title since their first success in 1930-31.
As for City, they were supposed to have lost the plot a few months ago and Pep Guardiola was apparently showing all the signs of a man who has misplaced his mojo. But it is not unrealistic that they could win the domestic treble in 2025-26, which may say something about the current state of the English top flight. City have partially rebuilt while still flying their trophy-winning machine and they certainly bought well in mid-season.
Their team that started the game with Arsenal cost £ 445 million, while their opponents’ line-up cost £ 450 million. City’s bench had £ 321 million’s worth of talent sitting on it, while Arsenal’s had just under £ 200 million waiting to get a piece of the action. They also had another £ 100 million unavailable. One look at the substitutes tells you everything you need to know – City have greater strength in depth. Both teams have a distinct lack of home-grown players in their first choice armoury; for Arsenal, it’s just Bukayo Saka (injured), Max Dowman and Myles Lewis-Skelly, for City it’s Nico O’Reilly and Phil Foden.
There’s no doubting Arsenal went into 2025-26 making a statement of intent, but their age-old problem of lacking a prolific marksman does not seem to have fully worked out. Viktor Gyökeres was on the bench against City and although he has netted 18 goals this season, just 12 have come in the Premier League. He’s a trier, but do the club feel they have signed a £ 55 million player? Gyökeres, at times, looks like a player struggling to make the step up from a second-tier domestic league to the Premier.
Arsenal played well against City, but the home team lacked nothing in determination and when the inevitable first goal came on 16 minutes, it was a piece of sublime virtuosity from Rayan Cherki, who weaved his way through the Arsenal defence, switching feet on the way before shooting past David Raya. Just 100 seconds later, Gianluigi Donnarumma hesitated as he was about to clear the ball and Kai Havertz dashed in and the ricochet flew into the net. The embarrassment was very obvious and with Arsenal defending stoutly, a half-time wager on a draw started to look like a sound investment.
City survived some scares as the woodwork was struck, notably by Eberechi Eze, but they do have a prolific scorer in their ranks in Erling Haaland. There have been rumblings that all is not well with the Norwegian striker, but he has 34 goals this season, the same total as 2024-25, so not too much is wrong. His finish was typical of a player who has scored 158 goals in 192 games for City. His through-the-game battle with Gabriel was compelling to watch and the two players resembled two rutting stags going antler-to-antler. This time, Haaland came out on top.
Arsenal didn’t give up and Gabriel had a header deflected onto the post and Havertz should have levelled in the closing minutes with a header that just cleared the crossbar. They talk of small margins deciding games and on this occasion, the outcome could easily have been so different. City have not won the league, but in terms of psychological advantages, they may have hit at Arsenal’s biggest weakness; in other words, the ability to remain confident with pressure building. Deep down, there is a feeling that once City gain the upper hand, they will be impossible to shift.
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