Erling Haaland was the hero as Manchester City struck a huge blow in the Premier League title race by battling to a 2-1 win over rivals Arsenal at the Etihad Stadium.

Pep Guardiola's men knew a victory was required to put the destiny of the title tussle in their own hands.

And they did exactly that, though it was a nervy victory as Arsenal struck the post either side of Haaland's 65th-minute winner, through Eberechi Eze and Gabriel Magalhaes, while Kai Havertz missed a huge chance late on.

City looked the more enterprising side in the early stages, and Arsenal had already had two big let-offs by the time they went ahead in the 16th minute. David Raya almost had the ball taken off his toes by Haaland, while Gabriel deflected Rayan Cherki's shot onto the post. 

Cherki's next involvement resulted in the breakthrough as he danced around Gabriel before slotting into the far corner, but Arsenal were gifted an equaliser two minutes later.

Gianluigi Donnarumma took too long after receiving a throw-in from Matheus Nunes, and Havertz diverted his clearance into the net.

Chances were then at a premium until Haaland clipped the outside of the post early in the second half, before City hearts were in mouths on two occasions. Donnarumma atoned for his earlier mistake with a massive one-v-one save to deny Havertz, then Eze's drive bounced to safety off the inside of the upright.

City retook the lead when two of their most influential players on the day – Jeremy Doku and Nico O'Reilly – combined on the left-hand side, with the latter's pass squirming through to Haaland, who finished on the slide.

Arsenal hit the post again through Gabriel's header, via a big deflection off O'Reilly, and the Brazilian was arguably fortunate to escape with only a booking when he thrust his head into that of old foe Haaland.

Mikel Arteta's team had one last opportunity to snatch a point, but Havertz headed over in stoppage time, meaning City will now usurp them at the top if they win their game in hand, against Burnley on Wednesday. 

Data Debrief: Arsenal's slide continues as momentum swings towards City

Arsenal have now lost four consecutive games in domestic league and cup competitions for the very first time under Arteta, and for the first time overall since March 2018. That run, like this one, also included two defeats to City, whose title hopes have now been boosted to 27%, according to the Opta supercomputer.

Guardiola is truly a master of these fixtures, as throughout his managerial career, he has led his teams to seven wins from eight games when facing the league leaders while sitting second in the table. 

Four of those victories have come in the Premier League, the joint-most any manager boasts in the competition (level with Alex Ferguson).

City had to ride their luck at times, with Arsenal hitting the woodwork twice in a game they failed to win for the first time since April 2022 (1-2 versus Brighton), while the Gunners narrowly edged the expected goals (xG) battle by 1.53 to 1.41.

But Haaland's heroics settled the day, as he became only the second player to score in four consecutive Premier League games against Arteta's Arsenal, after Liverpool's Diogo Jota between September 2020 and March 2022.