Manchester City lifted the English Premier trophy on Sunday, defeating Chelsea 1-0 in their home finale at Etihad Stadium. An early goal by Julian Alvarez helped the hosts to go ahead and they held on to the lead to secure a 12th straight win in the Premier League. Manchester City fans celebrated their team’s victory and title-winning moment by invading the pitch after the final whistle. Ilkay Gundogan lifted the trophy in front of their jubilant fans, a third successive title for City and a fifth in the past six seasons for a team that is completely dominating English football.
Treble-chasing City wrapped up the title even before playing their match against the Blues when second-placed Arsenal suffered a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Nottingham Forest on Saturday. Mikel Arteta’s men looked set to dethrone City after leading the way for much of the season. However, Arsenal slipped up in recent weeks by losing a few matches, allowing City to take the lead at the top of the table again.
City winning the Premier League title could be just the start of a historic treble of trophies, with the finals of the FA Cup and Champions League still to come.
The FA Cup final will be played on June 3 between City and their arch-rival Manchester United at Wembley. Pep Guardiola’s side will take on Italian club Inter Milan in the Champions League final on June 10 at the Ataturk Stadium in Istanbul.
City started their match against Chelsea in a dominating style and scored an early opener through Alvarez in the 12th minute of the game. Alvarez did well to slip the ball under Chelsea keeper Kepa Arrizabalaga from a timely pass by Kyle Walker. The 23-year-old Argentina striker also had another goal but cancelled out for a handball in the build-up. Alvarez’s decisive goal was City’s 100th goal at the Etihad this season, equaling the record they set in 2018-19, for most home goals scored in all competitions in a single season by an English club.
The Blues were poor in the opening stages but grew well as the game progressed. Raheem Sterling was denied by Stefan Ortega moments before their biggest chance so far when Lewis Hall’s whipped cross was met by Conor Gallagher at the back stick but his header rattled the post. Haaland and De Bruyne came on in the second half, but could not add to City’s lead. City fans saluted their former player Sterling with a standing ovation when he was substituted.
