Man City v Arsenal LIVE: Arteta identifies missing piece as collapsing Gunners lose control of Premier League title race | OneFootball

Mikel Arteta said Arsenal needed to be more ‘ruthless’ in defeat at Manchester City (Reuters)

Mikel Arteta said Arsenal needed to be more “ruthless” and lamented that “luck” was not on their side as Manchester City took control of the Premier League title race with a hard-fought 2-1 victory over the Gunners in a frantic clash at the Etihad.

City still trail their title rivals by three points but if they win their game in hand over doomed Burnley in midweek, they will leapfrog the Gunners at the top with just five games remaining.

Perhaps predictably, Erling Haaland was the hero as he expertly swept home with 25 minutes remaining and Pep Guardiola's side clung on despite Arsenal hitting the woodwork on multiple occasions in the second half, through Eberechi Eze and Gabriel Magalhaes, and Kai Havertz rippling the roof of the net deep in injury time.

Although Gabriel was “lucky” to avoid a red card for pushing his head towards Haaland’s, Arteta reflected that the title race showdown could have gone either way. “I don't think there was any difference between the two teams,” he said. “There is an element of luck, whether the ball goes in or not. We were close, not close enough.”