How Arsenal's title hopes may depend on Tottenham
Manchester City dominated Fulham on Saturday to take control of the Premier League title race.
The reigning European champions thumped the lifeless Cottagers 4-0 in west London. While the match was always difficult for the home team, Marco Silva’s side only managed one shot in the entire game.
The result takes City atop the English top-flight table by two points over Arsenal.
The two teams have now also played the same amount of league matches. Each side has two fixtures remaining, with the Gunners still to play Manchester United and Everton.
City, on the other hand, face Tottenham Hotspur on Tuesday before finishing out their season against West Ham.
Pep Guardiola’s side not only reclaimed the lead atop the table, but the demolition of Fulham also closed the goal difference gap with Arsenal.
The Gunners are now only edging City in the goal differential department by just two goals. With multiple matches remaining in the schedule for both clubs, this slender lead can potentially evaporate fairly quickly.
Following the big victory, star City defender Josko Gvardiol admitted that his teammates are aware of goal difference possibly coming into play in the title race.
“We just need to be focused on ourselves and keep going that way,” claimed the Croatian. “Of course we talk about it [goal difference] and as you can see we are trying to get there. But it is not easy, Arsenal have quality as well and they are doing quite well as well.”
Spurs would help their most heated rivals if they top City on Tuesday
With the race still tight, Arsenal will be relying on bitter rivals Spurs to beat City to help them secure their first Premier League title in 20 years. Tottenham fans are undoubtedly uncomfortable with aiding the Gunners in their title pursuit. However, the fellow north London side needs to keep winning if they want any chance of securing a place in next season’s Champions League.
City dropping points to Spurs would potentially wreak havoc on the title race. Arsenal could jump back atop the table if they top United this weekend and Spurs shock City in London on Tuesday. The eventual champion of England would then not be crowned until the final day of the season on May 19th. Even a draw in the City-Spurs matchup could very well be enough for Arsenal to take advantage in the race.
Gvardiol reiterated just how important his club’s next game will be in their season. “Another final,” the defender replied when asked about the Spurs match. “I played only once there and it was difficult. Hopefully it is going to be another good game and another good day for us.”
The Gunners have to be focused on tough Old Trafford test
Arsenal, however, cannot think too far ahead. Due to City’s win against Fulham, the Gunners have to go to Old Trafford and collect all three points on Sunday. Mikel Arteta’s team squandered the league title to City last season and will want to learn from their past mistakes.
Nevertheless, the red side of Manchester has not proven to be an easy place to visit for the Gunners. The last time Arsenal managed to beat United at Old Trafford in league play occurred back in 2020. No fans were in attendance during this particular match due to COVID-19 restrictions. Arsenal have topped the Red Devils four times away from home in the modern Premier League. All of these victories happened to be by a scoreline of 1-0.
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