With defeats at Liverpool and Arsenal, the title race is not over yet.This is how it feels | Super League

The Emirates Stadium was half-empty when the final whistle sounded, with home fans pouring into the Sunday darkness.

Mikel Arteta could be seen striding across the turf, applauding the empty pink seats, or at least those who stayed in their seats until the end of the afternoon, which ended with the raucous club anthem, touchline Starting in the flames, a carefully designed atmosphere of victory.

At the far end, Aston Villa players hugged, cheered and waved in an enthusiastic away crowd, a beautiful moment in their own season. Their 2-0 win here will go a long way to ensuring the club joins Europe’s elite next season. Beyond this, as the light fades to the color of cold spring pewter just above the edge of the stands, there is a sense that the day has turned decisively azure.

This is not the end of the three-team Premier League title race. This is not the beginning of the end for the three-team Premier League title race. But let’s face it, it’s probably both of those things. After all, we’ve seen this movie before.

It’s hard to imagine a more satisfying weekend for Manchester City, which started with a 5-1 win over Luton on Saturday, with goals flowing freely, key players not renewing their contracts and Real Madrid having three days off at home.

Liverpool and Arsenal both lost painfully at home, two hours apart, on Sunday. Ebereche Eze scored Anfield’s only goal early in the kick-off, a perfect combination with 14 minutes remaining. Liverpool then fired 427 shots at the Palace goal, but somehow never seemed to actually score. Arsenal started brightly at the Emirates Stadium but were quickly stymied by a muscular, well-drilled Aston Villa side who failed to hold on and almost dominated the final 20 minutes.

In the end, Manchester City only led the table by two points. But they also – and this cannot be overstated – have two huge and daunting points at the top of the table and a sense of the team heading towards the end, 12 games away from an unheard-of double or treble. Competition, this season has never left the pitch and has not found its higher gear.

In any field, there is a lot worth saying as long as you don’t walk away and make the other person blink. That is the essence of City’s title bid this time around, as much a show of will as it is the flow or pattern of the game. Fearless. Stick to the process. A mechanized full-field pursuit where the level never drops. It’s hard to see that this is the one point at which they start looking down.

Arsenal started well and could have taken the lead within the opening hour. They seemed to be in trouble just after half-time, with Villa producing a nerve-wracking performance that made your defeat a bit cruel.

The first goal came in the 84th minute, but it had already happened half an hour later. This is a strange goal, Arsenal’s previously excellent defense completely collapsed at this moment.

John McGinn performed well to anchor Villa’s midfield. He passed the ball to the left to Lucas Digne. Kai Havertz was on hand but not involved, allowing Digne to send a low cross into the Arsenal six-yard box past William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhães (Gabriel Magalhães), surprising Declan Rice behind them and then reaching Leon Bailey who tipped the ball home for David Raya Also caught off guard. An inconspicuous pass took five Arsenal players out of the game.

Two minutes later, the score became 2-0, this time Ollie Watkins scored again with a through ball. Watkins sprinted away, delaying just enough time before deflecting the ball into the far corner out of Raya’s reach.

This has been looking to be arguably Arsenal’s toughest remaining game in the league, not so much in terms of form but because of Emery’s willingness to tailor his team to the opposition, learning what Champions League opponents can use to disrupt Arsenal’s tactics. Sit deeper. Play during breaks. Don’t be surprised by what’s in the corner.

Arsenal will certainly be accused of limiting it here or contracting it temporarily. But there’s no lack of effort, maybe just the edge, the dirt, the luck, the skill and the sense of inevitability that comes with being a champion.

Odegaard performed well in the first half, tackling, dribbling, passing and always pulling the strings. But what’s the end of his rope? Kai Havertz had a blurry afternoon, drifting like a ferry waiting to dock. Gabriel Jesus is a familiar combination, possessing super smooth, sharp feet and all the striking precision of a croquet mallet.

None of that matters when the team is performing as well as they can. But these connections disappear here. With six games remaining, there’s plenty of time to change that. This is not the end. It just feels like that.