Arsenal Takes Step Towards Premier League Title
Arsenal secured a crucial 1-0 victory against Burnley on Monday evening at the Emirates Stadium, taking them closer to the English Premier League title. The Gunners could even be crowned champions on Tuesday if Manchester City fails to win against Bournemouth.
Waiting for an English title for 22 years, Arsenal is close to achieving their goal! The Gunners now have a five-point lead over Manchester City, who can only gain a maximum of six points. At the Emirates Stadium on Monday evening, Mikel Arteta’s men defeated Burnley, who are at the bottom of the table, 1-0, bringing them one step closer to the title.
Playing under interim manager Michael Jackson for the end of the season, Burnley tried to cool down the heated atmosphere at Emirates Stadium from the 3rd minute. However, the shot from Florentino, following a corner, missed the target. The Gunners then seized control of the match and created several opportunities. First, Saka saw his shot blocked (12th minute) by Estéve, one of the three French players for Burnley (along with Tchaouna and Ugochukwu), then Havertz missed the goal (14th minute) on a good pass from Trossard. Trossard himself hit the post with a shot from outside the box.
Havertz Scores from a Corner
Burnley played on the counterattack, and Mejbri could have caused an upset after being well served by Tchaouna, but his shot was off target. The last fifteen minutes before halftime belonged entirely to Arsenal, who appealed for a penalty after a possible foul on Saka, but the VAR ruled otherwise (34th minute). Three minutes later, Odegaard won a corner after a deflected shot while he was alone in the penalty area. Following the corner taken by Saka, Havertz scored a header to give Arsenal a well-deserved advantage (1-0, 37th minute). Saka could have doubled the lead just before halftime with a beautiful curling shot that narrowly missed the target.
In the second half, Arsenal continued to dominate the game, while Burnley settled for long-range shots (Anthony in the 51st minute, Mejbri in the 57th minute). Eze came close to scoring twice, first with a shot that bounced off the ground and hit the crossbar (54th minute), then with a header that Estéve cleared off the line (55th minute). The Emirates saw victory approaching, but fans took a breath in the 67th minute when VAR reviewed a potential red card for Havertz, who made a dangerous challenge on Ugochukwu. The German forward received a yellow card, and Arteta substituted him with Gyökeres.
Could Arsenal be Crowned on Tuesday?
Despite another shot from Trossard (88th minute) and a miss from Martinelli (96th minute), Arsenal didn’t score a second goal, but one was enough for the Gunners! Thanks to this victory, they now have 82 points before facing Crystal Palace on Sunday, while Manchester City has 77 points ahead of their match against Bournemouth on Tuesday and hosting Aston Villa on the final day. If Pep Guardiola’s side fails to win at Bournemouth, Arsenal will be crowned champions. They could celebrate as early as May 19, eleven days before their Champions League final against PSG.
