Another key day in a fierce Premier League title race began at the Etihad Stadium this lunchtime as Man City applied some pressure back on leaders Arsenal. Wins for both clubs last weekend saw the gap at the summit remain at two points, though the Gunners later thrashed Everton in their game in hand on Wednesday to extend the advantage to five with only 13 matches remaining this term.
And with Arsenal playing host to lowly Bournemouth later this afternoon, Pep Guardiola knew his defending champions could not afford to slip-up here or else run the serious risk of as much as an eight-point gulf by the end of the day. Instead they registered a fairly comfortable 2-0 victory thanks to a goal in each half from man of the match Phil Foden and substitute Bernardo Silva.
Eddie Howe insists that Newcastle’s Carabao Cup final loss at Wembley has made his team more motivated than ever, but a 14th successive league defeat at the Etihad means they have still not won in the top-flight since January 15 in another setback to their Champions League qualification hopes
