Manchester City reeled Premier League leaders Arsenal back in with a 2-0 win at Nottingham Forest as the title race heads towards a thrilling finale.
The Gunners moved four points clear when they beat Tottenham in a frantic north London derby earlier on Sunday, but City immediately responded thanks to goals from Josko Gvardiol and Erling Haaland at the City Ground.
Victory leaves them a point behind Mikel Arteta’s side with a game in hand and ensured Pep Guardiola’s 300th Premier League match in charge of City ended in success.
It is now 19 league games unbeaten as they perform their perennial trick of coming good just when it matters the most and they know they will be champions for a fourth successive year if they win their remaining four games.
Missing Phil Foden through illness, City were far from their best as Forest, fighting for their lives at the other end of the table, gave them an almighty scare, but could not convert several golden chances.
Nuno Espirito Santo’s side remain in the relegation mire, sitting one point above 18th-placed Luton, though they will hope to recover at least one point from their appeal against the deduction for breaking Premier League financial rules.
Forest fans roundly booed the Premier League anthem before the kick-off in protest at their perceived VAR injustice at Everton last week and it made for a raucous atmosphere.
Yes, Josko! 😍
🌳 0-1 🩵 #ManCity pic.twitter.com/L2T0eDwHpT
— Manchester City (@ManCity) April 28, 2024
The roof would have come off the City Ground had Neco Williams converted a presentable chance after just 24 seconds, but the Wales international could not make proper contact with Ola Aina’s cross at the far post.
They could have done with that going in as City soon took control, with Kevin De Bruyne forcing a good save out of Matz Sels and Jeremy Doku drilling wide.
Forest’s main weakness this season has been defending set-pieces and they conceded for a 23rd time in the 32nd minute.
Gvardiol ran across his marker to the near post and flashed his header past a helpless Selz.
But City should have been pegged back six minutes later as Chris Wood spurned a great opportunity, completely missing his kick from six yards out from Gonzalo Montiel’s ball back across goal.
Forest were causing their own problems from set-pieces and had another chance to level in first-half stoppage time when Ederson, who was taken off at half-time, flapped at a corner and Murillo saw his close-range effort glance the crossbar.
Wood missed another golden chance soon after the restart as his close-range effort from Anthony Elanga’s cut-back was blocked by Gvardiol.
But teams simply cannot afford to miss chances of those quality against City and get away with it.
How things look after the weekend''s action 🎢
Who will reach the summit when all is said and done? 🏆 pic.twitter.com/SXd8c1IqhH
— Premier League (@premierleague) April 28, 2024
The introduction of Haaland in the 62nd minute swung the momentum back to the visitors and nine minutes later the Norwegian found the back of the net.
De Bruyne fed Haaland, who toyed with Murillo before slotting home with the type of clinical finishing Forest lacked at the other end.
It was his 21st league goal of the campaign and saw him move into the lead in the race for the Golden Boot.
It also gave City a cushion they were never going to let slip and they held out for an important victory.
Pep Guardiola cast doubt over his long-term Manchester City future after admitting he is running out of things to achieve following an historic fourth straight Premier League title.The battle for top spot went down to the final day but the reigning champions held their nerve at the Etihad Stadium, where they could not afford a slip-up with Arsenal breathing down their necks.Phil Foden’s fant...
Roberto De Zerbi would like to work in the Premier League again but insisted he does not have another job lined up as he bade farewell to Brighton with a 2-0 defeat to Manchester United.The Italian, whose departure by mutual consent was announced on Saturday, has been linked with a host of top European clubs.De Zerbi cited a difference of vision with Albion owner Tony Bloom as the reason for leavi...
Rob Edwards admitted the doubters were right about Luton after they were relegated from the Premier League following a final-day 4-2 defeat to Fulham at Kenilworth Road.Adama Traore opened the scoring for the Cottagers with Raul Jimenez on target twice and Harry Wilson rounding things off midway through the second half. Carlton Morris (penalty) and Alfie Doughty scored to make it 1-1 and 2-3, but ...
Oliver Glasner replied with an emphatic “no” when asked if he expected his first three months in charge of Crystal Palace would result in his new side equalling a best-ever top-10 Premier League finish.The mood was sour in south London when the Austrian took over a relegation-threatened Eagles side in February, a nadir best exemplified by the protest banners raised by a disillusioned f...
Mikel Arteta vowed Arsenal would come back stronger and win the Premier League after they suffered title heartbreak for a second season in a row.The Gunners claimed a late 2-1 win over Everton on the final day but Manchester City’s 3-1 victory at home to West Ham crowned them champions for a fourth consecutive year.Any chances of last-day jeopardy appeared minimal from the outset, but were r...
Erik ten Hag says Manchester United must “do everything” to repay the “best fans in the world” by lifting the FA Cup after his club suffered their worst Premier League finish.The 20-time English champions signed off a dismal top-flight campaign with a 2-0 win at Brighton but finished in eighth place – their lowest final position since coming 13th in the old first divi...
Nuno Espirito Santo said he would celebrate with “two or three beers” after Nottingham Forest made sure of their Premier League status with a 2-1 win at already-relegated Burnley.Chris Wood scored a brace inside the opening 15 minutes against his former club to eliminate any worries that Luton might have beaten Forest to 17th place – something that would have required an unlikely...
Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou says a fifth-placed finish in the Premier League is a good achievement in his first season but insisted he has “lofty ambitions”.Spurs confirmed their place in next season’s Europa League with a 3-0 win at relegated Sheffield United on the final day of the season.Dejan Kulusevski’s double and Pedro Porro’s strike ensured they finished a...
Eddie Howe hopes Bruno Guimaraes was not bidding Newcastle a fond farewell after scoring the goal which clinched seventh place.Guimaraes capped a 4-2 win at Brentford with a late strike and celebrated in front of the away fans in a Toon bucket hat.The Brazil midfielder, linked with a move away this summer, then spent a long time waving to the travelling support after the final whistle.“I don...
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp told Anfield to never stop believing and to welcome his successor Arne Slot like they welcomed him as “change is good”.Speaking at a presentation on the pitch, made by owners John W Henry and Tom Werner, chief executive Billy Hogan and Sir Kenny Dalglish after the 2-0 victory over Wolves, the German addressed the crowd and offered a positive outlook on th...
- 1 Sterling considering leaving the club
- 2 Nuno Espirito Santo achieves ‘main objective’ as Forest win secures survival
- 3 Jurgen Klopp bids emotional farewell to Liverpool with last-day win over Wolves
- 4 Marcus Rashford's new £700,000 Rolls Royce Wraith revealed
- 5 David Beckham had the worst haircuts and dress sense
- 6 Arsenal, Bayern chasing PSG midfielder Simons
- 7 Emma Hayes ends Chelsea tenure with her ‘best title’ after latest WSL success
- 8 Craig Levein fell for Motherwell fans’ prank before St Johnstone secured safety
- 9 Celtic run riot against Kilmarnock to win another Premiership title
- 10 Ian Murray says Raith will improve for play-off final after shootout success