MANCHESTER,
England (AP) — Arsenal plunged Manchester City's Champions League qualification
chances into doubt by twice coming from behind to draw 2-2 in a gripping Premier
League game on Sunday. Alexis Sanchez earned Arsenal a point with a 68th-minute
goal that leaves his third-place team on the cusp of guaranteeing yet another
top-four finish under manager Arsene Wenger.
City went
ahead through Sergio Aguero in the eighth minute and Kevin De Bruyne in the
51st, only for Olivier Giroud to score the first equalizer and then set up
Sanchez for the second. City is in fourth place — the final Champions League
qualification berth — but will be overtaken by Manchester United, should its
great rival beat West Ham on Tuesday. The final round of games is next weekend,
when Arsenal needs only a point at home to already-relegated Aston Villa to
qualify for the Champions League.
This was
Manuel Pellegrini's final home match in charge of City before he is replaced by
Pep Guardiola in the offseason, and it's not the way he wanted to bid farewell
to Etihad Stadium. At the end of a week in which City was eliminated by Real
Madrid in the Champions League semifinals, the team is now at risk of failing
to be in Europe's elite competition.
Early in
the season, this was being viewed as a potential title-deciding fixture but
both teams slipped out of the realistic title conversation in March, leaving
them to battle it out to secure Champions League qualification.
City
started with much more attacking intent than against Real Madrid in the Champions
League on Wednesday, and almost inevitably it was Aguero that gave the hosts
the lead. Fernandinho headed the ball down and Aguero let it drop before
arrowing a low left-footed shot in at the near post from 15 meters out.
Arsenal
replied immediately — helped by a mistake from one of its former players. City
left back Gael Clichy tried to send a headed back-pass to his goalkeeper but
got it wrong and the ball crept past the far post. From the resulting corner,
Giroud was left unmarked to head home from a central position for his first
goal in 16 Premier League games.
The
intensity of the opening period couldn't last but it was still City looking
more dangerous, with Jesus Navas getting plenty of space on the right wing but
failing to find his men in the middle. Arsenal lost Danny Welbeck to injury
midway through the first half — potentially a worry for England ahead of its
Euro 2016 squad selection on Thursday — and then fell behind in the 51st.
De Bruyne
collected the ball and drove forward, before cutting inside and unleashing a
low shot that went through the legs of Gabriel Paulista and just inside the
near post. Theo Walcott's introduction as a substitute gave Arsenal more thrust
going forward and City had started to tire by the time Sanchez equalized.
Giroud
was involved again, providing a deft lay-off from Sanchez's pass and the Chile
forward reached the return ball before shooting first-time past Joe Hart from
the edge of the area. Over to you, United.
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