🦁 Man City beat Forest; Arsenal stay top with derby win; Bournemouth win | OneFootball

Three more Premier League games took place this afternoon as the league title, survival fight and race for European spots heated up even further.

City see off determined Forest to keep title in their own hands

Scorers: Gvardiol 32′, Haaland 71′

Nottingham Forest were left ruing missed chances as Manchester City beat them 2-0 at the City Ground to once again close the gap to Arsenal to a point, with a game fewer played.

Forest started quite brightly, creating an opening within the first 30 seconds. Unfortunately for them, Neco Williams could not get a strong enough on the ball after being picked out unmarked in the box.

City soon settled and began to dominate possession as expected. Kevin De Bruyne had their first chance just before the 10-minute mark, firing just wide after Rodri stripped Forest of possession and played in the Belgian.

Forest continued to pose a threat on the break and could be very happy with their first 15 minutes against the champions.

Ederson got away with one when he clattered into Willy Boly inside the box. It was very similar to André Onana against Bournemouth yesterday but no penalty was given in this instance.

City took the lead just after the half hour, slightly against the run of play. De Bruyne’s corner was whipped in and met by Joško Gvardiol, who grabbed his third goal for the club, all of which have come in April.

Forest were down to 10 for the corner as Williams had been injured prior to the corner being taken.

Chris Wood missed a golden opportunity to equalise shortly after, failing to sort his feet when the ball fizzed across to him with the goal gaping.

Murillo then wasted an even better chance, somehow flicking the ball over the bar after Ederson dropped it two yards out.

Wood, who has been in brilliant form of late, looked to have left his shooting boots at home as he wasted another chance early into the second half as Forest continued to trouble the champions.

Their failure to score was only amplified by City’s forays forward. Julián Álvarez was presented with the best chance after being played in by De Bruyne but fired over under pressure from a Forest defender.

There was cause for concern for both Pep Guardiola and Gareth Southgate with Jack Grealis icing his knee after being subbed off. In better news for the City boss, his replacement was the returning Erling Haaland.

De Bruyne continued to be City’s main man, forcing an excellent save from Matz Sels as he looked to seal the win for his side.

He did just that, playing in Haaland, who did brilliantly to shift his feet and finish coolly into the bottom corner.

Anthony Elanga tested substitute keeper Stefan Ortega with an audacious long-range effort as Forest looked for a way back into the contest as the minutes ticked by.

They could not as relegation became an even greater worry and City continued their seemingly relentless march to another title.

Arsenal hold off late Tottenham fightback

Scorers: Hojbjerg (OG) 15′, Saka 26′, Havertz 38′; Romero 63′, Son 86′

Tottenham and Arsenal locked horns in one of the most important north London derbies in recent memories, with both sides desperate for three points.

Inside a raucous Tottenham Hotspur stadium, it was an even beginning to proceedings, with both sides seeking a foothold in the encounter.

It was Spurs who had the first sight of goal, with James Maddison firing over from the edge of the penalty area.

But the Gunners struck first. After an effort from Declan Rice was blocked, Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg guided a deft header past his own goalkeeper from the subsequent corner, and silence the home fans.

Spurs nearly hit right back from a corner of their own, with Cristian Romero sending a free header wide when well placed. A minute later, the Argentine saw another header rebound off the outside of the post as the hosts pushed for an equaliser.

Arsenal got a bit of luck when an effort from Pedro Porro deflected into the path of Mickey van de Ven, only for the Dutchman to see his goal ruled out by VAR for offside.

And despite being largely second best, they doubled their lead when Bukayo Saka raced onto a Kai Havertz pass, before cutting inside and firing low past Vicario.

It was roles reversed 12 minutes later, and another set piece goal as Havertz met a Saka corner with a powerful header to make it 3-0 before half time.

Spurs were given a glorious chance to pull one back when Heung-Min Son raced through, only to send his effort high into the stands.

Postecoglou sent on Pape Sarr at half time in a bid to rescue proceedings, but they could have found themselves 4-0 down when Takehiro Tomiyasu sent a header over the bar moments into the second half.

After Romero sent a header over, Vicario was called into action once more as he made an excellent stop from Saka.

The Gunners gifted Spurs a way back into the game though, when David Raya passed the ball straight to Romero, who promptly sent it back past him and cut the deficit to two.

With the stadium roaring back into life, Spurs pushed for another, but Arsenal’s defence stood firm with Raya recovering well to dominate his area.

But another mistake, this time from Declan Rice, undid their hard work as the Arsenal midfielder kicked through Ben Davies, handing Heung Min-Son the chance to find the net from the spot. He made no mistake, setting up a grandstand final five minutes in the north London Derby.

Bournemouth and Brighton clash in South coast battle

Scorers: Senesi 13′, Ünal 52′, Kluivert 87′

Brighton were looking to keep their slim chances of European football alive with a trip to Bournemouth.

But after a bright start, it was Bournemouth who took the lead just before the quarter hour mark after Marcos Senesi, who had been booked earlier, rose highest to nod home with his side’s first effort on goal.

Brighton dominated the ball thereafter, pushing for an equaliser as Facundo Buonannotte fired over when well placed.

But the hosts still held a threat, with Enes Ünal firing wide and Alex Scott seeing an effort blocked.

Just after half time, they made good on that threat when Dango Ouattara found Ünal with a cross, and the January signing did the rest, nodding it back past Verbruggen and doubling his side’s lead.

Roberto de Zerbi’s side continued to have the ball, but could do very little with it as the Cherries looked good value for their lead, and Iraola’s side added the cherry on the cake three minutes from time when Justin Kluivert cut inside before firing home, ensuring all three points remained at the Vitality, and pushing Bournemouth into the top half of the Premier League.