Manchester City will be top on Christmas Day if Arsenal fail to win at Everton in Saturday’s late game. Even if that does not happen, there is a forbidding relentlessness to City that should scare Arsenal as they seek to end the sequence of three consecutive runners-up finishes.
Erling Haaland scored twice and Tijjani Reijnders once as West Ham were swatted aside, losing to City for the seventh time in a row after conceding at least three goals in the past six meetings.
After the break City’s control slipped, yet the bottom line is they are, once more, ruthless, so who would bet against the Gunners being thwarted again?
Nico González is a smooth replacement for Rodri, Phil Foden sparkles most games, Rayan Cherki is a box of tricks and Haaland is a killer in front of goal.
Six straight wins in all competitions faced off against zero in five in the league. Factor in West Ham’s previous victory over the hosts being in September 2015 (a 2-1 away win) and Nuno Espírito Santo’s iteration were seeking to bridge a 21-game gap to their club’s last triumph over City.
