Arsenal's Gabriel Jesus gestures §during the English Premier League soccer match between Nottingham Forest and Arsenal at City ground in Nottingham, England, Saturday, May 20, 2023. (AP Photo/Rui Vieira)
NOTTINGHAM, England (AP) – Manchester City clinched a third straight English Premier League title after second-placed Arsenal lost at Nottingham Forest 1-0 to cap its end-of-season collapse on Saturday.
City holds an unassailable four-point lead, with Arsenal – the once long-time leader – having only one game remaining.
It is City’s seventh league crown in a 12-year period during which the Abu Dhabi-owned club has changed the face of the English game.
City’s latest title is the fifth in Pep Guardiola’s seven years at the club and owes as much to its end-of-season streak of 11 straight victories as it does to an implosion by Arsenal, just when a first league title since 2004 was in sight.
Arsenal led by eight points on April 1 but has since won only two of eight games.
A win at the City Ground likely would have delayed the inevitable but Taiwo Awoniyi’s 19th-minute goal brought an end to the title race with City still having three games to play.
The victory also ensured Forest was safe from relegation in its first season back in the top-flight since 1999.
___
More AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
