Arsenal hand back advantage to Man City in title race after absorbing clash of the titans

Summit meeting: Picture by @YTJourno

Premier League

Manchester City (1) 2 Cherki 16, Haaland 65

Arsenal (1) 1 Havertz 18

Top since October they may have been, but the Gunners look certain to lose their long standing domination of the Premier League table this week after once again being made to suffer by Erling Haaland.

The Norwegian bagged a second half winner not long after the Gunners had twice gone agonisingly close to taking a 2-1 lead. The margins were every bit as tight as the vanishing gap between the two teams at the summit.

The Gunners were way better than they have been of late but still could not bend the game to their will and the cold facts are that City will supplant them if (when) they beat a virtually relegated Burnley at Turf Moor on Wednesday night.

It all feels a little bit like Kevin Keegan's Newcastle in 1996, when a 12-point lead evaporated That could have been the gap last Saturday had Arsenal beaten Bournemouth in their lunchtime game. Now it is only three points. The Sky pundits will be delighted.

Given the current form between the sides, it is curious that bookmakers had Arsenal down as title favourites before the game. It's like they have not been paying attention. It is also 11 years since the Gunners won at the Etihad Stadium and there have been one or two heavy beatings in that time.

This was a riveting, sometimes fractious clash. But that is no consolation to the defeated visitors. Just a few weeks on from the Carabao Cup defeat to Pep Guardiola's men, here was yet another devastating blow.

Arsenal were wobbling in the opening moments. The nerves apparent. David Raya dithered and almost paid a heavy price as Haaland charged in to almost block his clearance. Rayan Cherki's angled effort deflected off Gabriel's chest/shoulder and onto the inside of the far post.

Arsenal's passing looked crisp and purposeful, but then came a moment of magic from Cherki to put City in front. The midfielder has been sensational of late and here he ran at a retreating defence, sidestepping Piero Hincapie and Gabriel before sliding a pass inside the far post - Raya given no chance.

The stadium became of seething mass of blue and white ecstasy.

The Gunners could have been in big trouble had they allowed the hosts to build up momentum after their breakthrough and they recovered their poise in a hugely unexpected way.

Kai Havertz - rightly preferred to Viktor Gyokeres for his greater ability to hold up play - closed down Gianluigi Donnarumma to get a boot to the Italian's attempted clearance. To the sheer delight of those visiting fans at the far end of the stadium, the ball ricocheted past the City keeper and we were all square.

It really was all up for grabs now.

Haaland smacked the outside of a post from close in following a corner at the start of the second half but Arsenal continued to defend demonically. Hincapie picked up a first half booking but also executed a superb smothering block to deny Antoine Semenyo.

Jeremy Doku was a menace - as was the City high press which forced Arsenal to go longer than normal.

Three big moments midway through the second half were to decide Arsenal's fate. Within a couple of minutes of each other, Havertz almost capped a great move with another goal after Eberechi Eze and Martin Odegaard had worked the ball into the inside left channel. Donnarumma saved to redeem himself for the glaring error that gifted the equaliser.

Then, almost immediately, Eze managed to get around Abdukodir Khusanov to curl and beautiful shot that came back off the inside of the keeper's right hand post.

City made their let-off count. Doku rolled a pass into Nico O'Reilly and his stabbed cross reach Haaland at the back post, getting the better of Gabriel, and the outcome was all too inevitable.

Arsenal hit the post as they tried to salvage the game. Gabriel sent in a header that deflected off O'Reilly and onto a post. It was their last moment of danger until injury time when Havertz headed a great Leandro Trossard cross inches over the bar.

They were arguably unlucky not to claim a draw but the consequences of not doing so look bleak.

Citizens: (4-2-3-1) Donnarumma - Matheus Nunes, Khusanov, Guehi, O'Reilly -Bernardo Silva, Rodri (Gonzalez 88) - Semenyo (Ake 96), Cherki (Foden 84), Doku (Savinho 87) - Haaland

Gunners:(4-3-3) Raya - Mosquera (White 74), Saliba, Gabriel, Hincapie - Odegaard, Zubimendi (Gyokeres 84), Rice - Madueke (Martinelli h/t), Havertz, Eze (Trossard 74)