James Robson
Manchester City is back in another FA Cup final. Arsenal is back on top of the Premier League. And, Tottenham remain in the relegation zone despite ending their losing streak.
City will play in a record fourth straight Cup final after surviving a scare to beat second-tier Southampton 2-1 at Wembley on Saturday. Nico Gonzalez’s 87th-minute winner completed a comeback after going a goal down in the second half.
Victory kept up City’s bid for a domestic treble of trophies, having won the English League Cup and being locked in a race with Arsenal for the Premier League title.
“No team has made four finals in a row. It’s extraordinary, and hopefully, we can arrive with a good momentum,” City manager Pep Guardiola told the BBC.
Arsenal took advantage of City’s commitments to move three points clear at the top of the standings with a 1-0 win against Newcastle. Eberechi Eze’s brilliant first-half strike helped Mikel Arteta’s team bounce back after defeat to City last week.
“We knew after last week what we have to do, we have to win every game. We can’t focus on other people, we can only focus on ourselves,” Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice said.
At the bottom of the table, a first league win in 2026 wasn’t enough to lift Tottenham out of the relegation zone.
Spurs beat relegated Wolves 1-0 to hand Roberto De Zerbi his first victory as coach. But it remained in the drop zone, two points behind West Ham, which clinched a 2-1 win against Everton through Callum Wilson’s stoppage-time goal at London Stadium.
Liverpool moved up to fourth on goal difference by beating Crystal Palace 3-1. The defending champion leapfrogged Aston Villa which lost to Fulham 1-0.
Treble chasers
Guardiola is chasing a second treble of English domestic trophies after achieving the feat in 2019. A semi-final against Championship side Southampton was not expected to trip up his City team.
But when Finn Azaz curled a shot from outside the area into the top corner in the 79th, a famous Cup upset was on the cards.
Instead, City turned on the style. Jeremy Doku levelled with a deflected shot three minutes later, and Gonzalez powered a long-range effort past Daniel Peretz shortly after.
“It was amazing to score at the end. In this amazing stadium, with this atmosphere, an amazing feeling,” Gonazlez told the BBC. “It has been a really important week for us. We are alive in the league and in another final.”
Despite being a serial Cup finalist, City’s only win during that run was in 2023, having lost in each of the last two seasons.
Back on top
An early goal was just what Arsenal needed to ease the nerves in a crucial title clash against Newcastle. Eze delivered just that when whipping home from outside the box in the ninth.
But it was another tense day for Arsenal fans at Emirates Stadium as the Gunners ground out the win.
Arsenal are three points clear of second-placed City, having played a game more.
“We’ve got to this point for a reason,” Rice said. “There’s always going to be noise, from home fans, away fans, people outside. It’s about blocking it out and believing in what we can do, and that is just winning football matches.”
Tottenham’s relegation rollercoaster continues
For a short while, everything seemed to be going Tottenham’s way.
First, midfielder Joao Paulinha managed to stay onside to slide Spurs into an 82nd-minute lead at Molineux.
Moments later, Everton’s Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall levelled the score at West Ham — cancelling out Tomas Soucek’s opener and temporarily helping Spurs climb out of the relegation zone.
But Wilson’s winner for West Ham in the 92nd — after going on as a late substitute — saw the fight for survival take another twist.
Spurs’ win was its first in the league since December 28, and further evidence of a lift in form under De Zerbi, who was appointed last month.
AP
