3 months ago
1
The unit is connected Arsenal aft Manchester City chopped its pb astatine the apical of the Premier League to 2 points.
Second-place City bushed Newcastle 2-1 to crook the vigor up connected the rubric race.
Victory astatine the Etihad Stadium piles the unit connected person Arsenal up of Sunday's (February 22, 2026) northbound London derby against Tottenham.
Nico O'Reilly scored some goals for Pep Guardiola's squad and extended its unbeaten tally successful the league to five.
“The triumph was the astir important thing. Try to adjacent the spread arsenic good arsenic use arsenic overmuch unit arsenic possible, but (I'm) besides precise blessed with the 2 goals,” O'Reilly said. “It's a batch of games to go, we conscionable request to instrumentality each crippled arsenic it comes.”
City besides moved further wide of third-place Aston Villa, which drew 1-1 with Leeds. Chelsea is 4th aft a 1-1 gully with Burnley.
City is the squad chasing down Arsenal, which has stumbled successful caller weeks with lone 2 wins successful its past seven.
By contrast, City is uncovering signifier astatine the close clip for a rubric tally and crushed retired triumph against Newcastle.
Guardiola and his players appeared to admit however important the effect could beryllium arsenic they embraced each different aft the last whistle.
City connected the march
The momentum is with City astatine the apical of the standings having chopped backmost Arsenal's lead, which was 9 points earlier this month.
Three consecutive wins against Liverpool, Fulham and Newcastle person changed the complexion of the rubric race, portion Arsenal has drawn back-to-back games against Brentford and Wolves.
O'Reilly's 14th infinitesimal onslaught enactment City up against Newcastle, but Lewis Hall leveled successful the 22nd.
O'Reilly got his 2nd with a header crossed extremity 5 minutes later.
City defended heavy successful the 2nd fractional arsenic Newcastle went successful hunt of an equalizer and held retired for the win.
“We won today, but it's a measurement astatine a time,” said Guardiola. “Seventy percent of the players ne'er played successful that concern (challenging for the title), and I don't play. So we person to unrecorded it. They know, we know, that each crippled until the extremity of the play volition beryllium similar this.”
Villa's drops points
Aston Villa's rubric situation was deed aft being held to a 1-1 gully astatine location to relegation-fighting Leeds connected Saturday.
It took an 88th-minute equalizer from substitute Tammy Abraham to rescue a constituent for Villa — but the gully means Unai Emery's squad could beryllium chopped further adrift of Arsenal and Manchester City astatine the apical of the standings.
“There are 2 sides — 1 is that we mislaid 2 points, oregon that we won 1 point,” Villa manager Unai Emery said. “We person 51 points. Today, we mislaid two, oregon we won one. At this point, hopefully, we tin get the adjacent matches, knowing this constituent better.” Villa's gully leaves it 7 points down Arsenal and continued its shaky caller signifier of conscionable 1 triumph successful 4 successful the league.
It could person been worse aft Aton Stach enactment Leeds up from escaped footwear successful the 31st.
Abraham, a January signing from Besiktas, came connected successful the 75th and leveled from adjacent scope for his archetypal Premier League extremity since his determination to Villa Park.
Leeds is 7 points wide of the relegation zone.
Chelsea deed by precocious goal
Zian Flemming scored successful the 93rd astatine Stamford Bridge to salvage a gully for 2nd to past spot Burnley.
Joao Pedro's extremity successful the 4th looked similar being capable for the location team, which went down to 10 men erstwhile Wesley Fofana was sent disconnected successful the 72nd.
“You request to beryllium ruthless successful this league due to the fact that if you don't support acceptable plays good past you get punished," Chelsea manager Liam Rosenior said. “I felt we were precise blessed — and it's not the mode I privation to play — conscionable to support possession, I privation america to spell for much goals." The constituent moved Chelsea up to 4th — supra Manchester United connected extremity difference, having played a crippled more. But the contention for Champions League qualification could beryllium adjacent tighter by the extremity of the play with Liverpool present having the accidental to determination level connected points with Chelsea if it beats Nottingham Forest connected Sunday.
United plays Everton connected Monday.
Milner sets caller Premier League grounds
James Milner played his 654th crippled successful the Premier League to acceptable a caller quality grounds for the competition.
The 40-year-old Milner surpassed the erstwhile benchmark acceptable by Gareth Barry, which had stood since 2018. And helium doesn't dependable similar he's acceptable to telephone it a time yet.
"I'll support pushing, let's spot wherever that takes us,” Milner said aft Brighton's 2-0 win, which delivered a setback to Brentford's Champions League challenge.
Goals from Diego Gomez and Danny Welbeck enactment Brighton successful power earlier the interruption astatine the Gtech Community Stadium.
Brentford is 5 points disconnected the Champions League places.
Adams returns from injury
U.S. planetary Tyler Adams was backmost connected the tract for Bournemouth — making his archetypal quality since tearing his near MCL connected Dec. 15.
Adams was successful the starting lineup for the 0-0 gully against West Ham and played for 66 minutes earlier being replaced by Ryan Christie.
It's present conscionable 1 nonaccomplishment successful six for West Ham arsenic its conflict to debar the driblet continues to summation momentum.
West Ham, successful 17th, is 2 points distant from safety, but has played a crippled much than its closest rival Forest.
