Manchester City issued a huge statement of intent in the race for the Premier League title with a 3-0 win at Chelsea on Sunday.
Pep Guardiola’s team moved to within six points of leader Arsenal ahead of next weekend’s top of the table clash between the two teams. City also has a game in hand.
Nico O’Reilly, Marc Guehi and Jeremy Doku all scored in a blistering second-half performance at Stamford Bridge as City took full advantage of Arsenal’s shock defeat to Bournemouth on Saturday.
Tottenham’s survival fight took another blow after a 1-0 loss to Sunderland left it rooted in the relegation zone.
In coach Roberto De Zerbi’s first game in charge, Spurs fell to a 16th league loss of the season. Its 14-game winless run in the league dates back to Jan. 1.
Nordi Mukiele’s deflected shot sealed the game at the Stadium of Light and plunged Tottenham’s campaign deeper into crisis.
Tottenham is two points adrift of safety with six games to go. Its plight wasn’t helped by relegation-fighting Nottingham Forest drawing 1-1 with Aston Villa.
Crystal Palace came back from 1-0 down to beat Newcastle 2-1 at Selhurst Park.
City’s title charge gathers pace
While Arsenal’s form has hit a slump at the worst possible time, City made it three statement wins in a row after rolling over Chelsea.
Victory followed triumph against Arsenal in the English League Cup final and the 4-0 rout of Liverpool in the FA Cup last week.
While those three results all came in different competitions, City’s charge has an ominous feel about it after twice chasing down Arsenal’s lead to win the title in 2023 and ’24.
Second-placed City has the chance to cut the gap at the top to three points with victory against Arsenal at the Etihad.
Rayan Cherki was the inspiration at Stamford Bridge – setting up goals for O’Reilly six minutes after halftime and Guehi in the 57th.
Doku rounded off the win in the 68th.
The result didn’t help Chelsea’s bid to qualify for the Champions League, leaving it four points behind fifth-placed Liverpool.
Liam Rosenior’s team has won just one of its last seven league games.
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