7 Key Fixtures that Helped Manchester City to A 3rd League, Including 6-3 Win Over United

• Manchester City beat Chelsea to win a third successive league title over the weekend
• It was a commendable feat for Pep Guardiola’s side, who trailed Arsenal for most of the season
• There were some stand-out games in the season that strongly indicated City would catch up to Arsenal eventually

Manchester City had several stand-out results in the 2022/23 Premier League season which should have rang alarm bells that they were favourites for the league title.

Despite Arsenal being top of the table for more than 240 days, Manchester City went on a brilliant 11-game winning streak to eventually overtake the Gunners and claim a third title on the spin.

While City are always in the conversation in terms of the league title, it was hard to bet against Arsenal several weeks back, when Mikel Arteta’s side enjoyed an 8-point lead at the top.

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Sports Brief takes a look at some fixtures that were rigged with subplots in City’s surge towards the title:

West Ham 0-2 City, August 7

After a Community Shield defeat to Liverpool, there were question marks over Man City’s readiness to defend their title, but a comprehensive win over West Ham in their opening league game eliminated doubts.

City 4-2 Crystal Palace, August 27

This fixture was particularly significant as City showed character in coming from two goals down to claim an emphatic win over Patrick Vieira’s side. Erling Haaland scored a hat-trick in this one, as reported by Sky Sports.

City 6-3 Man United, October 2

This was the first glimpse of just how ruthless the Cityzens could be against top sides, as hat-tricks from Haaland and Phil Foden condemned United to an embarrassing derby defeat.

Chelsea 0-1 City, January 5

The key take-home from this game was Manchester City’s supreme versatility as they claimed a win away at Chelsea, with Guardiola making some significant tweaks to his tactics.

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Rodri played as a centre-half, while Cancelo was deployed on the right wing, with many critics saying Guardiola had overthought his squad pre-game.

City 3-1 Arsenal, Feb 15

City went into this game knowing a win would take them top of the table.

It was not going to be straightforward by any stretch, but a dominant second-half display saw them blow away the Gunners, further stamping down their credentials as the best side in the league.

Man City 4-1 Liverpool, April 1

At this point, Arsenal were hoping one of the traditional Big Six could do them a favour by slowing down City’s momentum, but that was not to happen.

Despite Mohamed Salah giving Liverpool the lead, City came back aggressively to sum up their frightening form.

Haaland was missing from this game through injury, but Julian Alvarez was on hand to give his side the equalizer, before they turned the game on its head.

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City 4-1 Arsenal, April 26

This was the game that confirmed Manchester City’s superiority in the league, as they once again put up a masterful performance against their title rivals.

Kevin de Bruyne was in the mood that evening, and Arsenal simply could not cope with their opponent’s slick play.

Mendy watches City lift PL

Sports Brief also reported on Benjamin Mendy’s rare appearance as Manchester City lifted the Premier League trophy.

The Frenchman has not played for the Citiyzens for over a year after he was suspended by the club, as he continues to face assault charges.

He made a rare appearance at the Juniper Restaurant in the company of two friends.