Manchester City seized control of the Premier League title race after Wednesday’s impressive 4-1 victory over leaders Arsenal.
Kevin De Bruyne scored twice as City retained their English crown with just seven games remaining. Despite holding a two-point lead at the top of the table, Arsenal’s hopes of winning the league for the first time in 19 years have been derailed as they have failed to win in their last four games.
City dominated throughout the match, with Haaland’s arrival bringing a new dimension to an already formidable side. Haaland’s record-breaking 33rd Premier League goal in a 38-game season was scored deep into stoppage time, taking his tally to 49 in all competitions for the campaign.
Haaland showed his skill by setting up De Bruyne’s opening goal in the seventh minute with a superb touch. Arsenal struggled to recover from the early setback and were fortunate not to concede any more goals before half-time. Ramsdale scored a hat-trick of saves to keep Arsenal in the game and deny Haaland a goal.
However, John Stones’ first-half stoppage-time header from De Bruyne’s free-kick put City in a commanding position, and a VAR review confirmed the goal was justified. Although Ramsdale continued to keep Haaland at bay in the second half, De Bruyne scored his second of the game on 54 minutes after a good pass from Haaland.
Arsenal’s defensive woes continued as they conceded 10 goals in their last four games. Holding was once again the scapegoat for Arsenal’s defensive struggles as he was unable to replace the injured William Saliba. Holding scored Arsenal’s only goal in the 86th minute but it was too late.
Despite Arsenal’s response, City’s dominance in the match and the league is clear. They are closing in on a third consecutive Premier League title and a potential treble with a Champions League semi-final meeting with Real Madrid and an FA Cup final against local rivals Manchester United.
Haaland added to City’s impressive performance by scoring his second goal and setting a new Premier League record with 33 goals in a season. He surpassed Mohamed Salah’s previous record of 32 Premier League goals in the 2017/18 season with virtually the last kick of the game.
