One team wants to make history. The other to give their long-time coach a fitting send-off. The third is eager for revenge. The narrative-rich Premier League title race is set for a thrilling finale as two points separate the top three teams with 15 rounds to go.Thanks to Arsenal – any neutral football fan will say, because with victory over Liverpool in Sunday’s derby, they made the championship race even more exciting, helped Manchester City catch the train and further tightened the fight for the title in the Premier League. The results of the last few matches of the teams from the very top of the English championship led to a movie-like plot, which at this stage of the season has not been seen for years on the Island. The Reds’ defeat in North London, followed by City’s victory last night in the western part of the English capital, hinted that the current season could be the most uncertain in a decade and potentially consign 2013/14 to oblivion when runners-up Liverpool fell short by two and third-placed Chelsea four points compared to the eventual champions Manchester City.The title race is best illustrated by the fact that after 23 rounds – as many as have been played so far – only ten times the three leading teams in the standings were separated by only two points, the last time was in the 2015/16 season when Leicester crossed the finish line first. But it was an ‘incidental’ season, one that happens ‘once in a hundred years’. City’s generation was worn out – Pep Guardiola would arrive that summer – Jurgen Klopp had just arrived at Anfield and was still putting the pieces together in a freshly rebuilt squad. It was an opportunity that would not come to Arsenal for years to come…The Premier League title race though 🤫#OptusSport pic.twitter.com/Si6ssUz32F— Optus Sport (@OptusSport) February 6, 2024 Now they have to wrestle with the giants to reach the throne, but although underestimated by many, Arsenal have become competitive with teams that in previous years were each other’s only rivals in the race. However, this season, there are three of them due to the ‘fault’ of Mikel Arteta’s team, and it is difficult to say with certainty who will cross the finish line first. Although many, taught by the experience of previous seasons, guess how everything could end…There has been an impression in recent years on the Island that City’s seasons under Guardiola, at least in local competitions, are very similar to each other. The Manchester team, as a rule, lost the Community Shield match, started the season slowly, but then after January they rose up and began to leapfrog their rivals on the way to the crown. Since Pep’s arrival, City have shown countless times that they do not crack under pressure in the championship, they respond to it with a series of victories, which could last for several months. Jürgen Klopp is also aware of what work awaits him in the second part of the season.”If you want to be around City, you better win every game because they will certainly do it. We will try to make the job as difficult as possible for any team that wants to finish the season above us,” said the German ahead of the visit to London.After all, City started one such series towards the end of 2023. When they returned from the Club World Cup on December 26, City were in fifth position, eight points behind leaders Liverpool, and their run of nine wins in all competitions – five in the Premier League – began to close the gap on the Reds, which – if they win the back-to-back match with Brentford on February 20 – could turn it into a minimal advantage.##EDITORS_CHOICE##And they did all this without the help of Erling Haaland and Kevin De Bruyne, the two players who, in the opinion of many, have the greatest influence on the game and the results of the Manchester team. With the return of the mentioned tandem, Guardiola’s company will only be more powerful. And although Chris Sutton does not want to – even publicly – write off Aston Villa and Tottenham (five and seven points behind Liverpool), he can already see the epilogue of the championship race in his head.”I think it’s a five-club race because the others have to believe, otherwise why are they doing all this? It’s going to be one hell of a race, a really good one. It seems to me that everything is slowly coming into its own for Manchester City. We’re all thinking the same now when their ‘main men’ came back. We’ve seen them make incredible runs every year and we think they’ll do it again,” said the former England striker, who helped Blackburn win their third and last national title in 1995.Bees can’t hurt you with the newest exTerminator on the market – Foden!Shay Given’s opinion is not too different from Sutton’s either.”You have to mention Aston Villa in this race, but my opinion is that this is a three-horse race. Liverpool’s defeat was perfect for Manchester City. It is up to them to prove why they are champions and why they will be champions again. I am confident that they will again to win the title,” the former Newcastle, Villa and City goalkeeper points out.So, everything points to the fact that it will be a three-horse race until the end, and even though Arsenal broke under pressure in the finish last season – of course, who wouldn’t? – Jamie Carragher believes they have a chance, primarily because of the defensive performance they have shown against the teams they are currently chasing after. Although Liverpool shook their net on Sunday, the impression is that the Reds would not have scored a goal if Arsenal’s defenders had not gifted it with their own mistake.”I said after the game that this was a better result for Manchester City than for Arsenal, but Arsenal have a slim chance of winning the title. That chance comes from how good they are defensively. I mean defensively in general, not just the number of goals conceded. When you look at the numbers, I think defensively they are the best team in the Premier League.”𝐀𝐫𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝟑-𝟏 𝐋𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐩𝐨𝐨𝐥: Opta Stats Review 📈Arsenal’s xG total of 3.52 was the highest faced by Liverpool in a Premier League game on record. 😲We look back at today’s clash, which has opened up the Premier League title race once again.#ARSLIV #AFC #LFC— Opta Analyst (@OptaAnalyst) February 4, 2024 Liverpool’s xG (expected goals metric) at the Emirates was only 0.37, while City’s was only marginally better – 0.48. Certainly the lowest for both of them in the Premier League since the start of the season.”We saw that with the example of how much xG Liverpool had yesterday. Let’s go back to the game when Manchester City were visiting the Emirates, a game that Arsenal won 1-0. The two best attacking teams in the Premier League went to Arsenal’s feet and it seemed that they will never score a goal. That’s what gives them chances,” assures the former Liverpool defender.When it comes to his beloved team, Carragher believes the only thing separating Liverpool and City is Kevin De Bruyne.”Put him in a Liverpool shirt and Liverpool will win the title. I think he’s that dominant,” Carragher claimed.What do you think – can Liverpool match City without De Bruyne until the very end and who will cross the finish line first?##NAJAVA_MECA_7855893##
