Weekend Review: Arsenal cling on in North London derby to keep title race alive

The Premier League title race looks to be going to the wire after Arsenal kept the pressure on Manchester City despite a Spurs fightback which frayed Gunners fans’ nerves.

And while Saturday’s action favoured the bookies, with most fixtures ending in draws, Liverpool’s title hopes were all but vanquished after another languid performance against lesser opposition.

West Ham United (4/1) dealt another blow to outgoing Liverpool (1/2) manager Jurgen Klopp after a Michail Antonio header secured a point for the Hammers at the London Stadium.

Jarrod Bowen had given West Ham the lead with his 20th goal of the season before an Andy Roberson strike and an Alphonse Areola own goal gave the Reds the lead before Antonio levelled matters.

Manchester United (1/2) all but ended their chances of qualifying for the UEFA Champions League next season after a 1-1 draw at home to relegation-threatened Burnley (4/1). 

Antony netted his first Premier League goal of the season late on, but Andre Onana gave away a penalty, which Zeki Amdouni converted to keep the Clarets in with a fighting chance of beating the drop. 

Elsewhere, Newcastle (1/5) battered Sheffield United (10/1) 5-1, confirming the Blades’ relegation. Everton (7/4) eked out a 1-0 victory over Brentford (7/5) to confirm top-flight status for another season and Aston Villa (21/20) and Chelsea (12/5) played out a 2-2 draw in a match mired in VAR controversy.

Bet365’s Steve Freeth explained how Saturday’s draw bonanza helped the bookies’ come out on top. He said: “Liverpool and Manchester United, who both went off at 1/2, were the catalysts for the profitable weekend, although we did pay out on 21/20 Aston Villa after they went two goals ahead, only for them to be pegged back by Chelsea.”

In Sunday’s crunch match, Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal (7/10) won 3-2 in the North London derby against Spurs (16/5) at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. 

The Gunners took the lead in the 15th minute from a Pierre-Emile Højbjerg own-goal. Micky van de Ven thought he brought Spurs level, but VAR adjudged the Dutchman was marginally offside. Less than two minutes later, Bukayo Saka doubled Arsenal’s lead. 

Kai Havertz compounded Spurs’ misery with a header from a corner in the 38th minute. Spurs were given hope when David Raya accidentally chipped the ball to Cristian Romero, who slotted it home just after the hour mark. Son Heung-Min then tucked away a penalty after a Declan Rice foul, but Arsenal held on for a vital three points.

Attention then turned to the East Midlands as Nottingham Forest (11/1) hosted Manchester City (1/4). City had to win to keep pace with the Gunners, and they went ahead thanks to a goal from in-form defender Joško Gvardiol, with Forest temporarily down to 10 men with Nico Williams taken off due to injury.

Erling Haaland then sealed the victory for City in the 71st minute. City are a single point behind Arsenal and have a game in hand – a trip to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in the penultimate game of the season. 

Betfred’s Alan Firkins remarked on that potential title-deciding fixture: “Over to Manchester City then, who weathered storms of their own in the East Midlands before eventually overcoming an unfortunate Nottingham Forest 2-0. They trail Arsenal by a point with a game in hand. Notionally, that game in hand is at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on 14 May. 

“It seems certain that to achieve their unique four-in-a-row set of Premier League titles, they’ll have to win there for the second time this campaign – and don’t forget that prior to that 1-0 January success they’d found winning there well-nigh impossible.”

Kindred Group’s Ali Gill commented: “Despite our two biggest matches going to the punters, all around, it was a pretty good week for us in the Premier League. Goals galore, an Arsenal win and some well-fancied names on the scoresheet meant the North London derby was our worst result of the whole weekend, and City’s routine win over Forest was another that players were happy to see. 

“But outside of that, though some layer-friendly results to keep the traders happy, as Liverpool finally left Arsenal and City to fight out the title race between them after a draw at West Ham.”

Betway’s Michael Reading added on the title race: “What was just about a three-horse race for the Premier League is now definitely a two-horse race as Liverpool failed once again to pick up the three points away at West Ham. 

“Meanwhile, Arsenal won the North London derby, and City cruised past Forest to keep both their title ambitions very much alive. We go 4/11 on City to win their fourth league title in a row, with Arsenal now at 9/4 to claim their first since 2004.”

Francisco Cano, head of trading at LiveScore Group, pointed out where the biggest markets were over the weekend, adding: “As the European football season nears its conclusion, the majority of the top leagues across the continent have already crowned their champions. From the major leagues, only the English Premier League remains undecided, with the race for the title heating up between Arsenal and Manchester City.

“This trend is reflected in the betting industry, with the most popular fixtures this weekend being Nottingham Forest versus Manchester City and Tottenham versus Arsenal. Draws for both Chelsea and Manchester United did, however, create great results, with the latter providing the major upset of the weekend after failing to beat relegation favourites Burnley at home.”

On the continent, Bayer Leverkusen (4/5) maintained their unbeaten streak with another last-minute equaliser against Stuttgart (3/1).

Reading commented: “In Europe, we thought we finally had Bayer Leverkusen beaten, but another dramatic stoppage-time equaliser meant Alonso’s men extended their unbeaten run to an incredible 46 games with a 2-2 draw against Stuttgart. Leverkusen remain on track for the first unbeaten campaign in Bundesliga history, and with three games left, they might just do it.”

There was sad news to come out of the horseracing sector, as two-time Cheltenham Festival winner Shishkin died after breaking his leg in an accident in his stable. Trainer Nicky Henderson confirmed the news on X, formerly Twitter, in which he labelled the horse an “absolute superstar”.

“This is a very sad night. He was our star and we will never forget him. Thank you Shiskin for the wonderful memories,” he added.

Shishkin, who won the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle at Cheltenham in 2020 and then followed it up with the Arkle in 2021, was due to race in the Punchestown Gold Cup on Wednesday, 1 May.

He did not make an appearance at Prestbury Park in March after Henderson’s yard was hit by a virus, with his last run ending in fourth in the Aintree Bowl.

Betfred’s Firkins sent his condolences and looked ahead to the weekend’s racing action.

He said: “Losing the mighty Shishkin over the weekend to an accident at home has deeply saddened so many in the industry. He gave his admirers some unforgettable days, and he’ll be sorely missed. 

“On the flat, it’s the 2000 Guineas on Saturday at Newmarket, with the reappearance of potential Classic wonder-horse City Of Troy, our very warm fav (4/6). He’s as short as 5/2 to win this and the Betfred Derby; while if you think the fabled Triple Crown is ‘on’ (Guineas, Derby, Leger), that’s a 7/1 chance.”