Arsenal continued to consolidate their position at the top of the Premier League rankings after a 2-0 victory over newly promoted team Burnley. The two goals of Viktor Gyokeres and Declan Rice helped Mikel Arteta and his team win all 3 important points away from home, thereby maintaining an impressive winning streak.
This victory helped The Gunners create a 6-point gap over their title competitors after 10 rounds in the Premier League. However, the harsh reality is that Manchester City and Liverpool will certainly not easily surrender, especially when both teams have returned to the winning streak last weekend.
Pep Guardiola's side won 3-1 against Bournemouth, with Erling Haaland scoring twice. Center-back Nico O'Reilly scored the third goal in the 60th minute, sealing the victory for Man City and helping the team rise to second place in the rankings.
The convincing victory over Bournemouth was clear evidence that Guardiola's students have regained their best form. They will create a real challenge for Arsenal in the championship race this season.
"I like the performance of the team for many reasons, and I especially appreciate this victory because Bournemouth are playing very well. They have only lost one match. They played at the same pace from the first minute to the 95th minute.
If you don't keep the ball carefully and lose it in the transition, you can't stop them. Brooks and Semenyo are both top-class players," Guardiola commented.
Meanwhile, Liverpool ended their disappointing streak with a 2-0 victory over Aston Villa at Anfield. Mohamed Salah and Ryan Gravenberch scored in turn, helping Arne Slot's team regain the joy of victory after the recent decline.
The Merseyside side are currently seven points behind Arsenal and have risen to third place after a win over Unai Emery's side. However, both Man City and Liverpool could fall one place if Sunderland defeat Everton in the early morning tomorrow.
Although the gap Arsenal have created at the moment seems big, history proves that teams have come back from lower positions. Man City have leveled an 8-point gap after 28 matches in the 2022-2023 season and 17 matches in the 2023-2024 season to win the championship.
The most impressive comeback came for Arsenal in 1997-1998, when they beat Man United by 13 points after 19 rounds to win the championship.
"Look, Arsenal could lose the title. I understand why Mikel Arteta, his players and their fans don't want to put too much pressure on this season.
But they are still the most stable team, trying their best for the past three to four seasons. In fact, I predicted them would win the last three seasons, and that clearly hasn't happened yet," said former Man United defender Gary Neville.
