Manchester City

Are Manchester City closing in on a fourth consecutive Premier League title? Jurgen Klopp said Pep Guardiola's side and Arsenal had to experience some "bad moments" in their remaining games to keep Liverpool's hopes of staying in the fight alive. So, after the Reds' defeat on Wednesday, does Guardiola think the race for the Premier League crown is just between City and the Gunners?

"It is not," the Spaniard told Match of the Day. "What happened to Liverpool, two defeats in a row, it can happen to Arsenal, it can happen to us. What is important is that still we are there. There is a lot of games to play."

Phil McNulty
BBC Sport chief football writer

Image source, Getty Images

Manchester City are at it again, reaching peak form just when it matters to turn up the pressure on pace-setters Arsenal as the title race reaches the final few fences.

Liverpool's recent decline continued as they were beaten by Everton in the Merseyside derby but Arsenal are not going away, with a win at Wolverhampton Wanderers followed by the 5-0 thrashing of Chelsea at Emirates Stadium.

This did not have any impact on City, who have been through this tension before, as what was pitched as a tricky trip to the south coast turned into a formality.

It had all the hallmarks of a City performance close to the Premier League finishing line - calm and ruthless with flashes of brilliance from those who can change any game for manager Pep Guardiola.

De Bruyne is renowned for just about anything apart from his heading ability but he scored an athletic effort to open the scoring. It was then Foden's turn to add further flourishes.

Such was their comfort that Guardiola was even able to give De Bruyne and Foden a breather by substituting them before the end with the game won, conserving energy for the weekend visit to struggling Nottingham Forest.

Image source, Getty Images

The chances of Manchester City slipping on a banana peel during this title run-in were always going to be slim, so it came as no surprise when Pep Guariola's Treble winners eased to within a point of Arsenal with a 4-0 win at Brighton at the Amex Stadium.

City were three goals up by half time thanks to Kevin de Bruyne and Phil Foden's double. Julian Alvarez added the cherry on top on 62 minutes.

The four goals scored last night put City, who have a game in hand, on a goal difference of 48. Arsenal, who scored five on Tuesday against Chelsea, are still out in front with 56.

Anything on your mind this morning about the midweek games, potential new managers, relegation worries, title nerves; don't be shy and keep it to yourself - send it to us.

All the usual channels are open but remember, put your names on your messages. If you don't, we'll give you an obscure player name from days gone by.

The Daily Mail

The bandaged hand of Phil Foden on the back page of the Mail indicates Manchester City are 'gunning' for Arsenal in the final games of the Premier League season. Arne Slot (such a great name) is the other headliner of the day.

Crossword clue for you: 12 across, move or slide unsteadily.

Image source, Mail

The Daily Telegraph

Fighting talk from the Daily Telegraph as Arsenal are warned they need to be looking over their shoulders for the oncoming threat of Manchester City.

Feyenoord manager Arne Slot gets top billing on every paper this morning, after saying he is "confident" Liverpool can come to an agreement with the Dutch club this summer.

Image source, Telegraph

The Daily Express

The man of the moment, Phil Foden, gets his second back page of the day, this time in the Daily Express.

Darwin Nunez, who was not on target for Liverpool in the Merseyside derby, is the subject of a story on why the Reds 'cannot afford to let pricey striker flop', and Bruno Fernandes is 'the man for all seasons' for Manchester United at the top of the page.

Image source, Express

Daily Mirror

The Mirror focuses on Phil Foden's double against Brighton in City's 4-0 victory on Thursday, which they write piles more pressure back on Arsenal in the title race.

Also making the news is Arne Slot's comments to ESPN confirming that he does want to takeover as Liverpool manager when Jurgen Klopp leaves in the summer.

At the bottom of the page, fixture congestion for next season is highlighted as a concern for Premier League clubs, with teams facing the potential of three midweek clashes between European and Carabao Cup games.

Image source, Mirror

Hello again, folks. Early birds assemble for a full day of manager news conferences, previews to the weekend's games and any big news stories that are doing the rounds.

Manchester City went to Brighton last night hoping to leapfrog Liverpool and close the gap on Arsenal at the top of the table. Did they succeed? Yes. Comfortably.

Which pictures of City player's celebrations have the back pages used this morning? Let's take a look...

Job done last night.

Image source, Getty Images

Slip-up on Wednesday.

Image source, Getty Images

Emphatic win on Tuesday.

Image source, Getty Images

Is this Premier League title chase now down to just two runners?