Manchester City took a huge step towards winning another league title, by beating Fulham 4-0 on Saturday.
Pep Guardiola rarely gets things wrong, especially when it comes to title run-ins, but the Manchester City manager might have misjudged one crucial element of this season’s battle for top spot.
Last week the Catalan claimed it was ‘not possible’ for his side to catch Arsenal’s impressive +57 goal difference, with City’s lagging six goals behind. Yet, heading into the final, crucial week of the Premier League title race, that advantage is disappearing in front of our eyes.
A 4-0 win at Fulham on Saturday afternoon reduced the gap between the teams’ goal differences to just two, an advantage that could easily be overhauled with two matches remaining for the title challengers.
Arsenal face Manchester United on Sunday before hosting Everton on the final day of the season. For City, it’s a trip to Tottenham Hotspur in midweek and then a clash against West Ham United on the final day of the campaign. The champions hold a one-point advantage and know that two more wins will secure a record-breaking fourth consecutive top-flight title.
City’s ability to reel in that goal difference is testament to their performance levels in the final weeks of the season. Just two and a half weeks ago, Arsenal held a 12-goal lead on the Blues, but City have improved their goal difference by +14 since then.
Guardiola’s side last dropped points in the league at the end of March after a 0-0 draw against Arsenal, and have gone on to score 28 in seven league games since. In comparison, the Gunners have netted 18.
It’s more than just goals; there has been a ruthless consistency to this team for several months. City have now gone 33 unbeaten in all competitions and have played 21 without losing in the league. Rodri’s personal record is 48 league games without a defeat, the second-longest individual run in Premier League history, while Kevin De Bruyne drew second in the all-time Premier League assists charts with 111, after he set up Josko Gvardiol’s opener at Craven Cottage.
It’s that mixture of momentum and experience that Arsenal will have to overcome in the final eight days of the season, albeit the Gunners will hope their great rivals can do them a favour on Tuesday. City have never scored a goal in four previous Premier League trips to Spurs’ new ground, and it’s becoming increasingly likely that game will decide the outcome of this title race.
