City beat Newcastle 2–1 to turn up heat on Arsenal

With Arsenal dropping points in a midweek draw against Wolves, Pep Guardiola’s side seized the opportunity to tighten the race at the top of the table.

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KATHMANDU: Manchester City kept the Premier League title race alive with a hard-fought 2–1 victory over Newcastle United at the Etihad Stadium, closing the gap on league leaders Arsenal to just two points.

With Arsenal dropping points in a midweek draw against Wolves, Pep Guardiola’s side seized the opportunity to tighten the race at the top of the table.

Teenage midfielder Nico O’Reilly was the hero of the night, scoring twice in the opening half to put City in control. He broke the deadlock in the 14th minute, calmly finishing with his first touch after latching onto a dangerous delivery into the box.

Newcastle hit back in the 22nd minute when a deflected effort from Lewis Hall wrong-footed the goalkeeper and found the net to restore parity. But the visitors’ joy was short-lived.

Just five minutes later, Erling Haaland whipped in a teasing cross from the right, and O’Reilly rose highest to power home a header, restoring City’s lead in the 27th minute.

Newcastle thought they had equalised before the break through Dan Burn, but the goal was ruled out for offside. City adopted a more cautious approach in the second half, focusing on game management while Newcastle pushed for an equaliser.

Late drama followed as Newcastle goalkeeper Nick Pope produced brilliant saves to deny both Haaland and Phil Foden, keeping his side in contention until the final moments. Pope even went up for a last-gasp corner, but Harvey Barnes’ delivery was met with a header that narrowly missed the target.

After 27 matches, Arsenal remain top with 58 points, while Manchester City move up to 56, setting up a thrilling title run-in.