Manchester City surpassed Arsenal to become top of the Premier League when Jack Grealish and Erling Haaland scored second-half goals to give the champions a 3-1 triumph in a thrilling encounter at the Emirates Stadium on Wednesday.
Grealish finished a brilliant team play in the 72nd minute with a low deflected finish past Aaron Ramsdale, then Haaland scored 10 minutes later to secure the win and strike a crucial blow in the race between the Premier League’s top two.
Haaland’s goal tied the single-season club record of 26 established by Manchester City great Sergio Aguero in 2014-15, with the Norwegian international still having 15 matches to go.
Manchester City had scored the lead in the 24th minute with a stunning strike from Kevin De Bruyne, capitalising on a defensive blunder by Takehiro Tomiyasu. However, Arsenal rallied just before halftime when Bukayo Saka calmly scored a penalty after Ederson was fouled in the box.
The visitors had a second-half penalty overruled when VAR rightly determined Haaland had been offside but Manchester City would not be denied to knock Arsenal off top position for the first time since Nov. 6.
Manchester City currently leads the league on goal difference, and while Arsenal has a game in hand, they must still go to the Etihad Stadium on April 26 for a potentially pivotal showdown.
Arsenal’s first home defeat of the season seemed monumental in the championship race, and it may well turn out to be so, with Mikel Arteta’s side having picked up only one point in their past three games.
“If you give three goals away the manner we did that gives them the game. It’s very bad since we had them,” Arteta remarked. “Against them, the margin for mistake is essentially nil. We made a lot of small mistakes.”
Pep Guardiola is the manager of Manchester City. Guardiola said that his team was “soft” in the first half but applauded their effort. “They were better than us in the first half, but we stepped up in the second and stayed in it.”
Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger surprised everyone by dropping right defender Ben White in favour of Tomiyasu, and Jorginho stepped in for the injured Thomas Partey for his first start since joining from Chelsea.
Arteta’s choice backfired as Grealish pressed Japan international Tomiyasu into a terrible back pass, which De Bruyne latched on before delivering a smooth lobbed finish over a helpless Aaron Ramsdale.
Rather than pounding the stuffing out of Arsenal, the hosts responded by regaining control in midfield while City appeared nervous and oddly keen on squandering time. Tomiyasu volleyed a chance over and Saka had another opportunity but delayed his shot too long.
Nketiah, who had earlier headed a chance wide, was passed through and struck goalwards in the 39th minute before being clattered by City keeper Ederson.
Nathan Ake hooked the ball off the line, but referee Anthony Taylor called a foul on Ederson. Saka slipped his penalty past the Brazilian, who escaped receiving a second yellow card, which could have had a bigger influence on the game and the championship chase.
When Ruben Dias’ header was glanced on to the crossbar by Ake in first-half stoppage time, City almost restored the lead.
When the interval, Arsenal lost momentum and received a let-off when City were given a penalty after Gabriel brought down Haaland in the box, but a VAR assessment found the Norwegian was offside.
When Nketiah slipped in to attempt to connect with a low cross, he was inches from giving Arsenal the lead, while Haaland was denied by Ramsdale following a mistake by former City defender Oleksandr Zinchenko.
However, Arsenal continued to invite problems, and when Gabriel was caught on the edge of his penalty area, Haaland’s ball found Grealish, who shot past Ramsdale.
Arsenal failed to respond this time, as Haaland clinched victory with a characteristically merciless finish eight minutes from time.