Arsenal and Liverpool have their own problems at the moment as they look to reignite their Premier League title hopes. But the aching bodies, tired minds and damaged morale that managers Mikel Arteta and Jürgen Klopp must overcome are suddenly threatening to bring Manchester City and Pep Guardiola to a standstill too.
If the Premier League trophy is to end the season with red ribbons rather than blue, this weekend is the last chance for Arsenal and Liverpool to turn the screws on City and capitalize on their period of weakness. When City return to the Premier League next Thursday at Brighton & Hove Albion, Arsenal and Liverpool could be four points ahead of Guardiola's team. If this is the case, do not underestimate the magnitude of the task facing the reigning champions.
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The sight of Erling Haaland and Kevin De Bruyne limping out of City's Champions League quarter-final defeat to Real Madrid on Wednesday, coupled with the look of exhaustion and failure on the faces of Guardiola and his players, has cast doubt on City's ability to bounce back To come up with legs and win the fourth title in a row. Who knows how difficult it will be for City if their treble hopes are dashed by a penalty shootout defeat? But after going 27 games without leaving the field and suffering one defeat – yes, technically they drew against Madrid for over 120 minutes, but tell Guardiola and his players they didn't lose the game – City have City have now lost their aura of invincibility They have improved since their 1-0 defeat at Aston Villa in December.
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Some title races are defined by teams that hit the ground running when they reach the finish line. They deal with injuries, fatigue and enemy “mind games” as if they didn’t exist. Leicester City's fairytale triumph in 2016 and City's hat-trick of titles in the last three years are examples of teams who block out all distractions to win the league. But sometimes the teams at the top falter and their physical and mental strength is tested. In 2012, when Sergio Aguero scored the 93rd-minute winner against Queen's Park Rangers in the final game of the season and secured the title for City, they and their nearest rivals Manchester United built a significant lead and lost it significantly – United had Playing eight points ahead with six matchdays to go – during the run-in.
This season's title race will be shaped by what happens this weekend. City's FA Cup semi-final against Chelsea on Saturday (Stream LIVE at 12:15 p.m. ET on ESPN+) gives their title rivals a chance to knock Guardiola's side off the top spot, with Arsenal away to Wolves on Saturday evening and Liverpool away to Fulham on Sunday. But although City's confidence has been hit by defeat against Real, Arsenal and Liverpool also need to pick themselves up.
Arsenal face Wolverhampton Wanderers, who have lost their last two games without scoring, Aston Villa in the league and Bayern Munich in the Champions League, while a one-point lead from Liverpool's last two Premier League games hurt their own title bid has. The 3-0 home defeat in the Europa League against Atalanta between the points lost against United and Crystal Palace also caused exhaustion of faith at Anfield. But although both teams are now two points behind City at the top of the Premier League, the dynamic can change quickly and Arsenal and Liverpool simply need to win this weekend to keep their hopes alive.
Liverpool and Arsenal may each have their last real chance to deny Manchester City a fourth consecutive Premier League title. Shaun Botterill/Getty Images
To win the title, Arsenal will have to buck their recent trend of faltering in the final weeks of a season. Last season the Gunners won just four of their last ten league games, while in the 2021/22 season they won five and lost five of their last ten games. This time they realistically need to win all six remaining games, but if they can get all three points at Molineux and then beat Chelsea at the Emirates on Tuesday, they will have a four-point lead (and a significantly better goal difference over City). would put Arteta's team firmly back in the title hunt.
Liverpool have a winning record in the league, so the recent drop in points is out of character for Klopp's side. Last season, seven wins and three draws from their last ten games were almost enough to secure a place in the top four, while eight wins and two draws in the 2021/22 run-in leaves them just one point behind the eventual champions City left.
Next up is Sunday's trip to Fulham, vital to Liverpool's title ambitions after their Europa League exit on Thursday despite a 1-0 second-leg win over Atalanta in Italy. Although Liverpool have not lost at Craven Cottage since December 2011, they have drawn on their last two league visits to the stadium – a result they can ill afford this weekend. But a win at Fulham, coupled with another victory in the Merseyside derby at Everton on Wednesday, would give them four points clear of City, who would have played two fewer games than Liverpool and Arsenal by the time they rejoin the league at Brighton.
There are many ifs and buts surrounding Arsenal and Liverpool, but one thing is abundantly clear: both need to win this weekend to retain realistic title hopes. However, if one or both of them can do the job this weekend and back it up with another midweek win, a four-point deficit would be a challenge for City even with two games to play. History suggests Guardiola and his players will rise to the challenge, but the title race is not over yet.
Real Madrid have shown that City can be beaten, so Arsenal and Liverpool must apply the pressure to make it in the Premier League.
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