Manchester City’s win over Fulham on Wednesday narrowed the gap to three points at the top of the Premier League
Manchester City’s players will sit down and watch Arsenal’s trip to Brentford tonight revelling in the pressure of trying to reel in the leaders and claim yet another Premier League crown. Pep Guardiola’s side breezed past Fulham at the Etihad on Wednesday night to trim the gap at the top to three points. The gap could stretch to nine before City play again in the top flight if the Gunners win at the Gtech tonight and then beat Wolves next week.
Mikel Arteta’s side remain strong favourites to end their lengthy title drought but City, sparked by the stunning comeback win over Liverpool at the weekend, remain firmly in contention and have a dressing room packed full of Championship-winning experience.
The Blues might have a new look after revamping the squad in recent seasons but in Rodri, Erling Haaland, Bernardo Silva and John Stones they have Premier League and Champions League winning experience that Arsenal cannot match.
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And while the message from Guardiola is to simply focus on their own performances rather than get caught up in the constantly changing points picture at the top of the table, the players themselves are relishing the chase. The leaders in the group are setting the standard for the younger and newer players to follow and the mood inside the camp is positive.
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For Antoine Semenyo, who opened the scoring in the win over Fulham, it is his first experience of competing for the top prizes but the challenge is not something that fazes the 26-year-old, who has hit the ground running at the Etihad with five goals in his first eight City appearances.
“I’ve been fine,” he said when asked about the pressure of performing at the very top. “I know I can help the team in many ways and obviously we have world-class players that can be effective for the team as well.
“It’s a dream of mine to be part of a team competing for the title but it’s also a lot of pressure and demands. But if we are doing our job on our side… we just need to sit down and watch Arsenal tomorrow and hopefully they slip up.”
Nico O’Reilly is another who will be glued to the TV tonight when the Gunners kick off. And the teenager is another enjoying the challenge of catching the Gunners.
“We’re definitely talking about it,” O’Reilly said of the title battle. “Our main goal is three points every game and to apply pressure on Arsenal.”
Over to you, Arsenal.
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