Premier League: Man City Suffer First League Loss Since December, Arsenal Crash as Liverpool go Top
Manchester City suffered their first Premier League loss since December as Bournemouth stunned the champions, while Arsenal were rocked by Newcastle and Liverpool seized top spot on Saturday.
City were unbeaten in their previous 32 league games dating back to a defeat at Aston Villa last year. However, Pep Guardiola’s second-placed side saw that streak come to an unexpected end in a 2-1 loss on England’s south coast. The Cherries had never beaten City in their 21 previous meetings, losing 19 of those matches, yet Andoni Iraola’s team sprang a huge upset to derail the champions’ push for a fifth successive title.
Bournemouth recently damaged Arsenal’s title hopes with a 2-0 win at the Vitality Stadium and they inflicted pain on City as well. Guardiola had claimed City faced an injury “emergency” after suffering fitness problems in Wednesday’s League Cup defeat at Tottenham. Despite doubts, Manuel Akanji, Kyle Walker, and Josko Gvardiol all started against Bournemouth, with Kevin De Bruyne, Savinho, and Jeremy Doku fit enough to be named among the substitutes.
City were rocked in the ninth minute when Bournemouth winger Antoine Semenyo drilled Milos Kerkez’s cross past Ederson from inside the area. Guardiola’s men were unable to respond, and Evanilson doubled Bournemouth’s lead in the 64th minute with a composed finish from Kerkez’s cross. Gvardiol’s header reduced the deficit in the 82nd minute, but it was too late to save City from a second defeat in four days.
Newcastle Defeat Arsenal
Newcastle put a huge dent in fourth-placed Arsenal’s title aspirations with a 1-0 win at St James’ Park. Alexander Isak netted in the 12th minute, heading home Anthony Gordon’s pinpoint cross. Injury-hit Arsenal struggled to get out of first gear, managing just one shot on target in the entire game. Mikel Arteta’s team, runners-up to City for the past two years, have taken just one point from their last three games, derailing their push for a first title since 2004 with a second league defeat this term.
Liverpool’s Late Power Surge
At Anfield, Liverpool were in danger of a surprise loss before regrouping to take advantage of their rivals’ stumbles with a 2-1 win over Brighton. Ferdi Kadioglu gave Brighton the lead in the 14th minute with a fierce strike that cannoned in off the post. However, Liverpool had beaten Brighton in the League Cup last 16 in midweek and repeated the trick thanks to a late revival. Cody Gakpo equalized in the 70th minute with a cross that looped straight into the net, and two minutes later, Mohamed Salah put Liverpool ahead with a curling finish into the top corner for his ninth goal this season. In Arne Slot’s first season in charge, Liverpool is now two points clear of City after their eighth win in 10 league games.
Forest’s Momentum Builds
Nottingham Forest climbed to third place after beating 10-man West Ham 3-0, marking three consecutive top-flight victories for the first time since 1999. Chris Wood scored his eighth goal in 10 league games with a header after 27 minutes. West Ham had Edson Alvarez sent off in first-half stoppage time for two bookings. Callum Hudson-Odoi struck in the 65th minute, and Ola Aina sealed the points 12 minutes from full-time at the City Ground.
In another match, Jordan Ayew’s stoppage-time equalizer denied Ipswich their first top-flight win since 2002, as Leicester rescued a 1-1 draw at Portman Road. Leif Davis’s 55th-minute volley put Ipswich ahead, but the hosts had Kalvin Phillips sent off in the 77th minute. Ayew leveled with seconds left, leaving third-bottom Ipswich winless after 10 games.
Second-bottom Southampton earned their first league win of the season as Adam Armstrong’s 85th-minute strike sealed a 1-0 victory against Everton.
