It’s official!!! Manchester City have literally created history after becoming the first English club to win four consecutive premier league title since the inception of English club football 135 years ago. They have been crowned Premier League champions again after a comfortable 3-1 win over West Ham at the Etihad Stadium, cementing their fourth consecutive win and Pep Guardiola’s six of the last seven Premier League titles since he took charge as manager in 2016. Their recent win brings city’s tally to ten premier league title since their inception in 1894, with Guardiola and his men winning six out of ten of all their titles. All this was made possible by one of City’s homegrown superstar Phil Foden also known as ‘agent 47’, who played a pivotal role in City’s triumph. He capped an outstanding campaign with two crucial goals that seemed to seal their victory by the 18th minute of the first half. The sharp shooter’s first goal came just 78 seconds after kickoff, a powerful shot from range that found the top-left corner, he then scored his second goal after converting Jeremy Doku’s cross from close range, making it his 19th goal of the season and 27 goals across all competitions, making it his best season yet with an impressive (19) goals and (8) assists tally in 35 matches. The mercurial talent has mercurial scored 50 goals for Manchester City his debut for the first team in 21 November 2017. His monumental determination for both club and country justifies him bagging the men’s FWA Footballer of the Year earlier this month, the 23-year-old has also won Premier League Player of the Season award. The English midfielder/winger continues to prove he is a force to be reckoned with and should not only be considered as a future ballon d’or contender but also indicted in the future G.O.A.T discussions alongside teammate Erling Haaland, Frenchman Kylian Mbappe and fellow English countryman Jude Bellingham. Despite City’s dominance, Mohammed Kudus scored a beautiful overhead kick late in the first half, shifting momentum briefly but Rodri’s low strike early in the second half after a remarkable city build up play, ending any hope that Arsenal supporters may have had of City loosing and consciously gifting them the title.
Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal side were in a position where they needed to rack up as many points as possible, especially in games in which they were the dominant side if they had any hopes of beating this seemingly unstoppable Man City team to the Premier League title. Having finished just two points off the champions, it is frustrating that just one more win would have been enough for the Gunners.
The Gunners have had a very strong season, winning a club record 28 games, drawing five, and losing five, but they still fell short of the title. Mikel Arteta’s side netted 91 goals across the campaign, which was the second-highest in the league, and they were the best defensively, having conceded just 29.Having finished just two points off the champions, it is frustrating that just one more win would have been enough for the Gunners.
The Gunners misfire, at their only shot of the illusive premier league title especially since their trophy drought since Arsene Wenger’s invincible 2003-2004 twenty years ago, can be attributed to their lack of a natural goal scorer, since they seemed to be the favorites to lift the trophy.
Despite being the second-highest-scoring team in the league, their inability to finish chances at times this season cost them the Premier League title. The most notorious examples of this are the home defeats to West Ham and Aston Villa. In the majority of these games, Arsenal was the dominant side and should have been victorious but they failure to take chances cost them what would have been crucial wins in the race for the Premier League title.
Every club at all levels of football has matches where they struggle to score but the Gunners’ problem is that they couldn’t afford to make these mistakes when competing with a side as elite as Manchester City, especially since they finished just two points off the champions, even more frustrating is that if they won just one of these games, it would have been enough for the Gunners to end their trophy drought.
Man, city’s remarkable achievement solidifies City’s supremacy in the Premier League, and their dominance under Pep Guardiola has been nothing short of extraordinary. Both Pep Guardiola and his men will surely be part of the history of English football for centuries to come. Their win will also ensure Pep Guardiola’s ascendance to the hall of fame as one of the greatest managers of all time above greats like Manchester United Sir Alex Ferguson, Arsenal’s Arsene Wenger, Carlo Ancelotti and ‘the special one’ Jose Marinho. If Manchester City’s win the FA Cup finals against their Manchester rivals in the upcoming derby they would continue making history, since it will ensure a double back-to-back win on both the FA and Premier league especially after winning the treble during the 2023 season. This will not only add another trophy to their collection but also further solidify their position as a dominant force in English football.