Supercomputer predicts Premier League title race after wins for Arsenal and Man City

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Sunday provided another great day of drama in the Premier League title race as three horses became two.

Liverpool’s latest disappointing result away at West Ham United on Saturday has all but ended their hopes of sending Jurgen Klopp off with a second English top-flight title, with wins for Arsenal and Manchester City creating a chasm of space between the top two and the Reds.

The Gunners looked to be romping their way to north London derby success and just about squeezed home with a 3-2 victory away at Tottenham before the defending champions gave a reminder of their monotonous brilliance, overcoming Nottingham Forest 2-0 despite a few scares here and there.

So where does Gameweek 35 leave the title race? Here’s how the statisticians at Opta see the final few weeks of the campaign playing out.


Erling HaalandErling Haaland

Will Man City romp home to the title? / Robbie Jay Barratt – AMA/GettyImages

If Liverpool had any lingering hopes of finishing top of the pile before the weekend, they were firmly extinguished by a 2-2 draw at West Ham that showed cracks emerging in the dressing room with a sideline bust-up between Mohamed Salah and manager Klopp.

Their chances of winning the title were down at 1.6% ahead of the trip to London Stadium but that percentage has been all but wiped out by Opta, now sitting at a mere 0.1%. Gulp.

The race is now firmly between current leaders Arsenal and defending champions Man City, both of whom picked up three points on Sunday.

Mikel Arteta’s side were in cruise control for much of their 3-2 win over Tottenham but showed enough grit and determination to hold off the home fightback and suggest they have learned lessons from the painful capitulation at the end of 2022/23.

Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg’s headed own goal provided the perfect start for Arsenal before Bukayo Saka and Kai Havertz made it 3-0 before half-time. Cristian Romero profited from another David Raya error and Son Heung-min converted a penalty late on, but the visitors were strong enough to hold on.

The north Londoners aren’t going away but, while they’re currently perched at the top of the tree, Arsenal still aren’t backed by the number-crunchers to finish in that position. Their chances of title success are rated at 32.5%, which represents a boost of 5.9% from their previous estimate of 26.6%.

It’s close to a one-in-three chance of a first title since 2003/04 for Arsenal, but the odds are still stacked in City’s favour, even if their percentage has dropped from 71.7% to 67.4% following the weekend.

The Cityzens weren’t at their imperious best at the City Ground, needing goals from Josko Gvardiol and Erling Haaland to see off a spirited Forest side scrapping at the bottom of the table.


Pos

Team

% before

% after

Change

1.

Arsenal

26.6

32.5

+5.9

2.

Man City

71.7

67.4

-4.3

3.

Liverpool

1.7

0.1

-1.6


Tottenham Hotspur v Arsenal FC - Premier LeagueTottenham Hotspur v Arsenal FC - Premier League

Arsenal scored a huge win at Spurs on Sunday / Catherine Ivill – AMA/GettyImages

Both Arsenal and City look in imperious form and it’s hard to see either side losing or even drawing before the Premier League season is over, especially when looking at their respective fixtures.

Bournemouth are the type of opposition the Gunners have steamrolled at points this season and a home win will be expected in their next outing, while a trip to Old Trafford to face Manchester United cannot afford to end with anything other than a victory.

One thing that does count against Arteta’s squad is that they have only three games remaining compared to City’s four. They may even have to support their bitter north London rivals for a match, too.

While City take on Wolves and Fulham in their next two outings, they visit Tottenham in their penultimate league game of the season. If the standings remain the same before that fixture and City then win at Spurs, Guardiola’s side would take a two-point lead into the final day.man ci


Arsenal

Man City

04/05/24 – Arsenal vs Bournemouth

04/05/24 – Man City vs Wolves

12/05/24 – Man Utd vs Arsenal

11/05/24 – Fulham vs Man City

14/05/24 – Tottenham vs Man City

19/05/24 – Arsenal vs Everton

19/05/24 – Man City vs West Ham


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