By James Robson
Kevin de Bruyne scored twice as Manchester City beat first-place Arsenal 4-1 on Wednesday (Thursday AEST) to take control of the Premier League title race.
While the defending champions remain second in the standings, Arsenal’s lead was cut to two points, with City having two games in hand.
Kevin De Bruyne celebrates his opener at the Etihad Stadium.Credit: AP
A third league title in as many years is now in sight for manager Pep Guardiola, whose team are in contention for a treble of trophies including the Champions League and FA Cup.
Arsenal proved no match for City in a game that always looked likely to have a major say in determining who would be crowned champions.
Mikel Arteta’s team has led the way for much of the season but never recovered from De Bruyne’s seventh-minute opener at Etihad Stadium.
Aaron Ramsdale produced a string of fine saves to keep Arsenal in the game until John Stones headed in a second for City in first-half stoppage time.
Arsenal are now just two points clear of City having played two games more.Credit: AP
Any hopes of an unlikely comeback were ended nine minutes into the second half when De Bruyne scored his second of the match.
Rob Holding pulled one back for Arsenal in the 86th, but it was too late to change the outcome.
Erling Haaland completed the rout to make it 4-1 in stoppage time.
It is the third time City have beaten Arsenal this season, including victory in the FA Cup, and extends its winning sequence against the Londoners to eight games.
Elsewhere, Brentford condemned Chelsea to their fifth defeat in five games in all competitions under interim coach Frank Lampard as an own goal by Blues’ captain Cesar Azpilicueta and a second-half strike by Bryan Mbeumo handed the Bees a 2-0 win.
The loss left toothless Chelsea 11th in the Premier League table, stumbling towards possibly their worst campaign since the 1993/94 season – when they finished 14th under Glenn Hoddle – despite their new U.S. owners’ huge outlay on players.
Brentford went ahead when defender Mathias Jorgensen headed on a corner at the near post and the ball struck Azpilicueta and went in after 37 minutes, before the visitors had even had a shot of their own on target.
Lampard – Chelsea’s third coach this season after the dismissals of Thomas Tuchel and Graham Potter – brought on winger Mykhailo Mudryk and striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang at half-time as he sought to end a goal drought that has now seen the London side score only once in seven games in all competitions.
But it was substitute Mbeumo who showed the Blues how to do it in the 78th minute when he drifted in from the right and his fiercely hit shot was deflected beyond Kepa Arrizabalaga.
The three points pushed Brentford up a spot to ninth in the league, eight points ahead of their big-spending west London neighbours for whom this season cannot finish quickly enough. Media reports said Chelsea were close to hiring former Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino as coach from next season.
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