Manchester City refused to accept defeat and yet, in the final reckoning, it may be the game that means they are beaten. It was the 97th minute when Jeremy Doku curled in his second spectacular goal of an extraordinary evening. City still have not lost in the Premier League since January, but it might have been the night the title slipped from their grasp.
“It was in our hands, and now it is not,” said Pep Guardiola. The winners were not Everton, though they were seconds away from their biggest scalp at Hill Dickinson, but an old Evertonian. If Mikel Arteta makes Arsenal champions, his debt to David Moyes and Everton will still be greater. It is definitely an advantage for Arsenal in the title race after a stunning spell and a City collapse. Even their subsequent comeback, with two late goals, only reduced the damage done in the second half on Merseyside. “It is better than no points,” added Guardiola.
