Manchester City took a giant step towards retaining their Premier League title with a dominant 4-1 win over league leaders Arsenal on Wednesday.
Kevin De Bruyne was the hero of the match, scoring two goals to help City close in on their fifth title in six seasons.
Despite holding a two-point lead at the top of the table, Arsenal’s challenge to win the league for the first time in 19 years had already taken a hit with their failure to win in their last four games.
However, they were no match for City, who flexed their muscles to take control of the game.
The arrival of Erling Haaland has added a new dimension to a City side that was already the dominant force in English football.
Haaland set a new Premier League record with 33 goals in a 38-game season and his sublime touch set up De Bruyne for the opening goal of the game after just seven minutes.
Arsenal never recovered from that early setback, with De Bruyne and Haaland causing havoc in their defence.
John Stones headed in De Bruyne’s free-kick in first-half stoppage time to give City a 2-0 lead, which was confirmed by VAR after an offside scare.
Despite Ramsdale’s best efforts, Haaland set up De Bruyne for his second goal of the night on 54 minutes. Arsenal did manage to get on the scoresheet through Rob Holding, but City had the last laugh as Haaland scored his 49th goal of the season in stoppage time.
With a treble still in sight, City now looks imperious as they close in on not only a third consecutive Premier League title but also a potential meeting with Real Madrid in the Champions League semi-finals and a FA Cup final against local rivals Manchester United.
On the other hand, Arsenal now faces a huge challenge to get back on track and keep any sort of pressure on City in the final weeks of the campaign.
