(Reuters) – Manchester City regained their one-point lead at the top of the Premier League with a 3-0 win over Brighton and Hove Albion while Arsenal upset London rivals Chelsea with a 4-2 victory at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday.
Liverpool had taken over at the top of the table after their 4-0 demolition of Manchester United on Tuesday, meaning City could ill afford a slip-up at home to Graham Potter’s side.
Pep Guardiola’s team struggled to break down a well-organised Brighton defence in the opening 45 minutes but broke the deadlock through Algerian forward Riyad Mahrez in the 53rd minute.Kevin De Bruyne burst forward from inside his own half, brushing off three challengers, before finding Mahrez who converted at the second attempt.
That opener settled City’s nerves with the hosts scoring a second 12 minutes later as Phil Foden’s effort from distance was helped past Brighton goalkeeper Robert Sanchez by a deflection.
Bernardo Silva added a late third to round off the win that moved Pep Guardiola’s side onto 77 points from 32 games.Arsenal’s victory, with two goals from Eddie Nketiah was a major boost in their bid to qualify for the Champions League via a top-four finish.
The win moves the Gunners level on 57 points with fourth-placed Tottenham Hotspur with both teams having played 32 matches and set to meet at Spurs on May 12.
Arsenal went ahead twice in a pulsating first half at Stamford Bridge, first when Nketiah pounced on a weak back pass by Andreas Christensen in the 13th minute and then when Emile Smith-Rowe finished off a flowing counter-attack in the 27th.
