Arsenal’s failure to end their Anfield hoodoo—throwing away a 2‑0 lead to draw 2‑2 away to Liverpool on Sunday—has opened the door for Manchester City to snatch the Premier League title. Mikel Arteta’s men still lead the table by six points, but for the first time in nearly two months City have the destiny of the title back in their own hands. City have nine league games remaining to Arsenal’s eight and will enjoy home advantage when the two sides meet at the Etihad on April 26.
Since losing to City in mid‑February, Arsenal have defied their relative inexperience in a title tussle. A run of seven consecutive league victories, featuring late winners, routine wins and dazzling football, showed the making of champions. However, they finally unraveled under the pressure of an Anfield crowd eager for blood after a difficult season for Liverpool. Arteta had warned ahead of the game that he expected to face a “jungle” of an atmosphere at a stadium where Arsenal have not won in the league since his own playing days in 2012.
For the first 35 minutes, the visitors demonstrated why Liverpool’s eighth‑place league position does not reflect their quality. Arsenal took the lead twice through Gabriel Martinelli and Gabriel Jesus and could have added more, but Jesus’s wayward finishing and a fine save from Alisson Becker denied Oleksandr Zinchenko. “We started the game exceptionally well, dominated it, and took the game where we wanted,” Arteta said. “We scored the first one, and continued to play the way we wanted. We scored the second one and that was a moment to kill the game. And yet, before half‑time, we gave them hope.”
Mohamed Salah’s strike just before the break flipped the momentum, and although the Egyptian missed a penalty early in the second half, Arsenal could not turn the tide. Liverpool’s relentless attacks were finally rewarded when Roberto Firmino headed in three minutes from time. The drama continued as Aaron Ramsdale produced miracles in the Arsenal goal to salvage a point. “We gave every single ball away, especially in very dangerous areas when you allow open spaces in big transition moments against the best team in the world doing that,” Arteta added. “When that happens, it’s chaos. It’s a lot of balls in your box, it’s difficult to get out of those situations and then you have to suffer.”
Arsenal’s second‑half retreat does not bode well for the tough road tests ahead. In addition to their trip to City, they must travel to third‑placed Newcastle. Avoiding defeat at the Etihad in 17 days’ time will keep the title very much still Arsenal’s to lose. Meanwhile, on a day when Liverpool’s outside shot at a top‑four finish was effectively killed off, City emerged as the big winners.
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