Week 25 of the English Premier League sees Manchester City close the gap at the top to two points after a stunning win against Arsenal, with Liverpool facing West Ham on Monday night.
When Manchester City lost to Newcastle in midweek, the grim reaper arose from his deep sleep beneath the weeds and took an Uber to The Etihad. Fortunately, for Pep Guardiola’s side, the sickle holder booked a return trip.
Since the turn of the year, City has won eight of nine matches, scoring 34 times and conceding only 4, so it’s safe to say the Newcastle defeat was more of a headache than terminal illness.
When Arsenal came to town, it was clear that the City players had taken their aspirin, as they burst into the lead within the first minute. As against Newcastle in midweek it was Sergio Agüero who scored after getting on the end of an Aymeric Laporte cross, after some dawdling from an Arsenal defender.
Raheem Sterling warmed the hands of Bernd Leno in the fifth minute with a screamer from outside the box before Arsenal equalised – Laurent Koscielny heading home from a grilled cheese sandwich width from goal after Nacho Monreal had provided the flick from a corner at the near post.
Sterling provided Agüero with his second of the game in an exquisite move. The former Liverpool star picked the ball up on the left flank, played a delicious chipped one-two with Ilkay Gündogan before volleying the ball across the six-yard box for the Argentine international to score from close range.
Agüero sealed the points with his third on 61-minutes. Sterling was the creator once again, slaloming towards the byline before providing a cross that the City striker bundled into the goal with his arm. The referee found the handball to be unintentional, and Agüero’s tenth English Premier League (EPL) hat-trick hit the record books. The Argentine star is one behind Alan Shearer who scored eleven before hanging up his boots to become a Match of the Day pundit.
The bookies slashed Agüero’s odds on winning the EPL Golden Boot to 3/1 after scoring his 157th goal in 227 games, and you feel that a fit and happy Agüero is going to be a vital component of any City silverware this season. With Liverpool facing West Ham on Monday night, Pep Guardiola’s side closed the gap at the top to two points.
Arsenal still seems a little inchoate under Unai Emery’s reign, and the Spaniard is going to need several seasons before you see his wipe the squad clean of Arsene Wenger’s DNA.
The Gunners drop to sixth, a point behind Manchester United (who beat Leicester by a goal to nil), and three points behind Chelsea (who hammered five past Huddersfield).
The one concern for Emery will be his team’s away form. Defeat against City is their 12th away defeat since the start of 2018, and only Brighton (14) and Huddersfield (13) have lost more.
Results in Full
Spurs 1 v 0 Newcastle
Everton 1 v 3 Wolves
Chelsea 5 v 0 Huddersfield
Brighton 0 v 0 Watford
Burnley 1 v 1 Southampton
Crystal Palace 2 v 0 Fulham
Cardiff 2 v 0 Bournemouth
Leicester 0 v 1 Man Utd
Man City 3 v 1 Arsenal
Playing Monday
West Ham v Liverpool
Premier League Table
1. Liverpool – 61 points
2. Man City – 59
3. Spurs – 57
4. Chelsea – 50
5. Man Utd – 48
6. Arsenal – 47
7. Wolves – 38
8. Watford – 34
9. Everton – 33
10. Bournemouth – 33
11. Leicester – 32
12. West Ham – 31
13. Brighton – 27
14. Crystal Palace – 26
15. Newcastle – 24
16. Southampton – 24
17. Burnley – 24
18. Cardiff – 22
19. Fulham – 17
20. Huddersfield – 11
Odds
To Win
Liverpool 8/13
Man City 11/8
Spurs 25/1
Top 4 Finish
Spurs 1/8
Chelsea 8/11
Man Utd 6/4
Arsenal 3/1
Relegated
Huddersfield 1/100
Fulham 2/9
Cardiff 1/2
Burnley 2/1
Top Scorer
Mohamed Salah Evens (16 goals)
Sergio Aguero 3/1 (14 goals)
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang – 10/3 (15 goals)
Harry Kane 14/1 (14 goals)
Next Manager to Leave
Claude Puel 6/4
Marco Silva 2/1
Neil Warnock 6/1
No Manager to Leave 6/1
