EPL Round-Up: Arsenal Go Clear, Manchester City Stumble, Chelsea Leapfrog Liverpool in UCL Race

Bukayo Saka’s ninth-minute goal against Brighton proved to be vital as Arsenal took three points at the American Express Stadium. Manchester City dropped points at home as Elliot Anderson scored the equalising goal for Nottingham Forrest in the 76th minute. João Pedro, with a hat-trick, won a crucial clash for Chelsea against Aston Villa. With this win, Chelsea has overtaken Liverpool for the fifth spot in the Premier League and is in a better position to qualify for the Champions League. 

Arsenal leads title race

The Gunners, travelling away from home, were facing a resurgent Brighton and Hove Albion. Brighton, coming into this game, had won two games on the trot. But it was Bukayo Saka who scored the all-important goal for the visitors in the ninth minute. Mikel Arteta’s side was happy to play on the backfoot for the rest of the 80 minutes. Saka’s goal was one of the only two shots that Arsenal managed to put on target. Brighton not only took more shots than the visitors, but also held the ball for 58%, with Arsenal seemingly parking the bus against the home team. 

Manchester City fail to collect three points at home

Manchester City could only draw against Nottingham Forrest, in spite of coming in to lead twice during the match. Antoine Smenyo opened up the scoring with a goal in the 31st minute of the match. It remained as the sole goal in the first half, with the visitors, courtesy of Morgan Gibbs-White, equalising in the 56th minute.

Rodri, scored to put the hosts in the lead in the 62nd minute. However, Elliot Anderson equalised in the 76th minute to make sure that the two teams shared the points.

Following their draw against Nottingham, City have fallen seven points behind Arsenal in the title race in the Premier League. Fortunately for them, they have a game in hand, but turning this around could prove to be tricky for the Manchester-based team. 

Chelsea move closer to UCL qualification

Joao Pedro’s hat-trick could not have come at a better time for Chelsea as they beat fourth-placed Aston Villa in their own den in Birmingham. Cole Palmer also scored in the 55th minute to hand Aston Villa their second loss in a row. The visitors were all over their opponent even after conceding in the second minute. They held the ball 59% of the time and struck nine shots on target. On the other hand, Villa only attempted eight shots in total, with only four going to hit the target. 

Other results in the Premier League

• Newcastle United defeat Manchester United 2-1

• Fulham defeated West Ham United 1-0