The race is on.
THE TOP STORY
Mikel Arteta urged Arsenal fans to “bring their dinner” ahead of Saturday’s lunchtime kick-off against Bournemouth.
In the end, Arsenal supporters left the Emirates with a sour taste in their mouths and a dawning, daunting realisation that it could be happening all over again.
Arsenal’s 2-1 defeat to the Cherries left them nine points clear of Manchester City, but Pep Guardiola’s team had two games in hand.
Man City played the first of those spare matches on Sunday, and after a poor first-half, turned in a second-half display of utter domination to put Chelsea to the sword, winning 3-0 and ensuring the title race is well and truly on.
Credit: Instagram - @mancity
It paves the way for this Sunday’s titanic tussle between the Premier League’s top two at the Etihad Stadium to be a true title decider.
Win, and Man City will be three points off the Gunners with a game in hand. If Arsenal get the victory, then the title is surely, finally, theirs. A draw would, of course, not be a bad result for Mikel Arteta’s men.
But that is perhaps the issue. One can’t help but watch Arsenal and think they do not know how to take the handbrake off. At least, not when it really matters.
It was on show in the EFL Cup final loss to Man City last month. It dragged into that shocking FA Cup exit at the hands of Southampton. They got the job done in the first leg of their Champions League clash with Sporting CP, just about, but against Bournemouth they were listless, creating chances worth just 0.19 expected goals from open play.
There is nothing wrong with Arsenal being reliant on their excellent set-pieces — in fact, leaning on that quality should be considered a positive. But there has to be a balance. You can’t count on the deliveries or the movement always being perfect, even if they are spot on 90% of the time.
Surely, a title-winning team needs more in their armoury, and Arteta’s critics will now be licking their lips at the thought of Arsenal “bottling it” again.
By most metrics, Arsenal are still favourites, but momentum is definitely with Man City. And momentum is crucial.
THE SUB-PLOTS
Tottenhamare in the bottom three. With six games left to go, they are two points behind West Ham, who dragged themselves out of the relegation zone by thrashing Wolves 4-0 on Friday. Spurs had the chance to go back above the Hammers, only to lose 1-0 to Sunderland on Sunday, as Roberto De Zerbi lost his first game in charge. With Nottingham Forest picking up a draw against Aston Villa, Spurs are in a position where draws aren’t going to be enough. Next up? De Zerbi’s old club Brighton, who are in the European race.
Chelsea have now lost three successive Premier League matches, with their last two defeats coming by 3-0 scorelines. Liam Rosenior’s team looked sharp, at times, in the first half against Man City, but then completely capitulated in the second, as Guardiola’s men took control at Stamford Bridge. With Liverpool now four points clear in fifth place, it suddenly looks much more like a tussle for sixth place for the Blues.
Newcastle United are in real danger of not just missing out on Europe, but also finishing in the bottom half. They once again threw away a lead to lose 2-1, this time to Crystal Palace, to slide down to 14th on 42 points. That is still only six off sixth place, but the Magpies just cannot get it going consistently, and they can’t seem to hold onto leads, either. In fact, they have lost 25 points from winning positions this term, more than any other Premier League team.
THE GLOBAL GAME 🌎
🇩🇪 Bayern Munich have smashed the Bundesliga goals record for a single season. Their 5-0 win over St. Pauli means they have now plundered 105 goals in the league this season, racing past the previous record of 101, and with six games still left to play, Vincent Kompany’s team can surely be aiming to get to at least 120. The title will soon be theirs too, given Borussia Dortmund’s loss to Bayer Leverkusen.
🇪🇸 Speaking of title races being all but wrapped up, Barcelona are now nine points clear at the summit of LaLiga. Real Madrid once again failed to win, drawing with Girona, and Barca hammered Espanyol 4-1. Now, the focus for both these Spanish giants turns to the Champions League.
🇮🇹 While Antonio Conte has refused to rule his Napoli team out of the title race, Inter took a big step towards claiming the Scudetto by overcoming Como 4-3 in a thriller on Sunday. They are nine points ahead of the reigning champions, with six games left to play. Surely, that gap is going to be too big to bridge now.
COMING UP
A few highlight fixtures for this week (all times GMT).
Monday: Man Utd v Leeds United (20:00) — PL
Tuesday: UCL quarter-finals (20:00)
Wednesday: UCL quarter-finals (20:00)
Saturday: Spurs v Brighton (17:30) — PL
Sunday: Everton v Liverpool (14:00), Man City v Arsenal (16:30) — PL
MTAG’S RECOMMENDATION
The Swiss Ramble’s latest piece focuses on Newcastle’s finances.
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