Arsenal may have been left frustrated on the road, but the bigger picture still looks rosy for Mikel Arteta’s side. A goalless draw at Nottingham Forest on Saturday was enough to send the
Gunners seven points clear at the top of the Premier League, while events elsewhere — particularly at Old Trafford — further strengthened their title position.
Arteta’s men dominated possession and territory but could not find a way past a resolute Forest defence, becoming just the second team this season to keep Arsenal scoreless in the league. The visitors pushed late for a winner, yet the final breakthrough never came.
“We tried until the end to find a goal,” Arteta said. “We didn’t concede a single shot again, but that’s football — sometimes you don’t find a way.”
While Arsenal dropped two points, Manchester City endured a far more damaging afternoon. City’s title hopes took another hit as they were outplayed and beaten in a fiery derby by Manchester United, a result that left Pep Guardiola’s side without a win in four league matches.
Carrick lifts the gloom at Old Trafford
Under interim manager Michael Carrick, United produced their most convincing performance in months. After a bleak run that included an FA Cup exit and just one league win in six, Old Trafford finally rediscovered its voice.
Second-half goals from Bryan Mbeumo and Patrick Dorgu sealed a deserved 2–0 victory, but the scoreline barely reflected United’s dominance. Three goals were ruled out, and twice the woodwork denied them further reward.
“Today was special,” Carrick said. “It’s one result, but the performance level has to become the standard.”
City captain Bernardo Silva was blunt in his assessment. “A really bad game from us. They were much better and deserved to win.”
United briefly climbed into the top four before later results pushed them back to fifth, yet the mood shift was unmistakable.
Title race and table taking shape
After 22 games, Arsenal sit on 50 points, with City and Aston Villa both on 43. Villa have the chance to keep pace when they host Everton on Sunday.
Liverpool missed another opportunity to close the gap, drawing 1–1 at home to Burnley despite peppering the visitors’ goal with 32 attempts. Florian Wirtz opened the scoring, but Burnley — second from bottom — snatched a point through Marcus Edwards. It was Liverpool’s fourth consecutive league draw.
Chelsea, West Ham find timely wins
At Stamford Bridge, Chelsea enjoyed a winning start under new manager Liam Rosenior. Goals from Joao Pedro and Cole Palmer secured a 2–0 victory over Brentford, lifting Chelsea into sixth place.
“We weren’t as free-flowing as I want,” Rosenior admitted, “but we got the job done.”
West Ham produced late drama in north London, beating Tottenham Hotspur 2–1 to end a 10-game winless league run. After Crysencio Summerville’s opener and Cristian Romero’s equaliser, Callum Wilson struck in stoppage time to snatch a vital win that boosts West Ham’s survival hopes and piled further pressure on Spurs boss Thomas Frank.
As the Premier League season gathers momentum, Arsenal continue to set the pace — even on days when the goals dry up — while Manchester United’s derby resurgence has added fresh intrigue to both ends of the table. Photo by Ank kumar, Wikimedia commons.