Manchester City-Arsenal play out goalless draw; Liverpool remain on top of Premier League table

Arsenal remained unbeaten against Manchester City this season

A rather disappointing deadlocked draw at Etihad Stadium gave Liverpool the lead over Manchester City and Arsenal in the Premier League championship battle.

Liverpool’s victory over Brighton at Anfield, where their two closest competitors cancelled one other out, has propelled them to the top of the table, two points ahead of Arsenal and three more than City.This was a horribly disappointing match that belied its potential classic status, with Arsenal’s containing strategies stifling City’s opportunities while the Gunners had few of their own.

Before leaving the game hurt, Nathan Ake had a close-range header saved by Arsenal custodian David Raya. Former City striker Gabriel Jesus also occasionally threatened, but he was unable to make contact with Bukayo Saka’s cross that was centimetres from scoring after the interval.

Although this result will please Mikel Arteta of Arsenal more than Pep Guardiola of City, Liverpool and Jurgen Klopp became the true victors.

Although Guardiola’s team was under a greater burden to prevail in this match, their typical flowing distributing style was seldom evident. The visitors’ professionalism and referee Anthony Taylor’s unwillingness to penalise the Gunners for a string of infractions also incensed the referee.

Erling Haaland remained on the fringes the entire time, and despite the best efforts of maestro playmaker Kevin de Bruyne and Bernardo Silva, City were never able to find their normal rhythm or momentum. It resulted in a messy, fragmented game.

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For the majority of the second half, the home team maintained control of the ball, but Raya and Stefan Ortega’s lack of nervous moments and extended stretches of inactivity served as a testament to the quality of play.The defending champions will, as usual, be confident in winning the championship, but Guardiola will be extremely dissatisfied with his team’s inability to pose a threat to Arsenal. In fact, Jack Grealish, the substitute, received some long post-match coaching from his boss.

Wednesday night, City returns to Etihad Stadium to take on in-form Aston Villa, aware that one more mistake may cost them dearly in this close race for the Premier League title.

Liverpool, in the meantime, will be leading the Premier League at the conclusion of the weekend after Mohamed Salah struck the winning goal against Brighton at Anfield, while Manchester City and Arsenal drew.The fact that the Reds’ championship opponents would be facing each other in Sunday’s late kickoff meant that a win over Brighton could prove to be vital.

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