Advantage Man City? 'Queen bee' Guardiola leads them to the top

Media caption,

Man City move top with win as Burnley relegation confirmed

It took just five minutes for chants of "we are top of the league" to ring out around Turf Moor from the visiting supporters.

Manchester City beat Burnley 1-0 to hit the summit of the Premier League for the first time in eight months, when they led the way after thrashing Wolves in the opening week of the season.

During the intervening period Arsenal sat at the top looking down on all below them, but they have had a nine-point lead evaporate in the past 11 days.

Mikel Arteta's men could have gone 12 clear and possibly out of sight on 11 April, but suffered a shock home defeat by Bournemouth and City took full advantage with three straight wins, including a monumental one over the Gunners on Sunday.

Despite the victory and going top, will City rue being unable to find a more clinical edge against a team relegated down to the Championship?

With each goal potentially proving crucial in a tense title race, City may view a victory with a solitary Erling Haaland goal as a missed opportunity to boost their goal difference.

"We had chances," said Guardiola. "Not for what is going to happen in the future but to win the game. It was clear, [Martin] Dubravka [Burnley goalkeeper] was good but the last part of shooting was sometimes fatigue.

"I had the feeling if we scored for 2-0, we would be more relaxed [knowing] the game is in our hands and more composed in the final third. In terms of what I asked of the team, the gameplan and focusing on what we have to do, they have been extraordinary."

He added: "We played a really good game. Unfortunately we missed a lot of chances. We defended better in the second half and we had less problems.

"I was not frustrated, why would I be? We won three points, we are top of the league. Of course we can do better but the guys did everything."

Former Manchester United defender Gary Neville said on Sky Sports: "The players, coaches and fans of Arsenal watching this will be thinking 'will Manchester City play like this against other better teams?' They could trip up.

"There should be urgency to kill the game off, but it is also the goal difference part - it could become vital in the title run-in and you would have thought this was an ideal opportunity."

A tight and tense finale in store

Should City and Arsenal win all their remaining five games they will both end on 85 points, meaning goal difference or goals scored could be the determining factor come May.

This is how tight it is - both teams have played the same number of games (33), have the same number of points (70) and their results are identical too - having won 21, drawn seven and lost five of their matches.

The only factor separating the two sides is the number of goals scored, with City netting 66 to Arsenal's 63.

Such is the topsy-turvy nature of this season's race, City could find themselves trailing by six points by the time they next play in the league at Everton on Monday, 4 May - if Arsenal beat Newcastle and Fulham during that period.

City have previously scored five or more goals against Burnley in five different Premier League games - the most one side has done against another in the competition - and would have been eyeing up similar before this match.

Although City had 65% possession, a total of 28 shots with an expected goals (xG) of 3.54, they could only muster one goal through Haaland's winner in the opening five minutes.

"Not many Arsenal players would have expected Burnley to get a result today, but if you are an Arsenal player or fan, you would take a 1-0 loss for Burnley," former City defender Nedum Onuoha told BBC Radio 5 Live.

"Arsenal play Burnley in a few weeks and they will probably not be as wasteful with their chances as City, with so much on the line. Before you know it City are chasing Arsenal. I don't think psychologically it matters that much.

"Now they have played each other, there is no longer this talk about the title decider in April. You have your five games, they have their five games. If you do well enough and win your games, the league title could very much be Arsenal's.

"They have to back themselves. The fact this only finished 1-0 to City when they had 28 shots, maybe this is the boost they need to turn their form around."

Former Premier League goalkeeper Tim Krul added: "Arsenal have been so close the last few years, I think we all half want them to get it. But you can't rule out Manchester City.

"My money would be on City, just with the experience. They are serial winners with the best manager in the world looking after them. You can't not back them."

A psychological boost?

Media caption,

Man City focusing on winning 'all five games' in title run-in - Guardiola

Phil Johnson, a chartered member of the British Psychological Society's division of sport and exercise, told BBC Sport: "One of the gifts that Guardiola has is his strong emotional connection with his players, with the staff and with the fans. This is crucial to the whole culture of the club. He is getting players to perform significantly well - some of whom may be considered to have gone past their best.

"What we are seeing with Arsenal is something I often see when I work with swimmers and runners. They are so close to the finish line that for a moment they imagine that they've already won - their bodies and their brains just kind of relax that little bit more and they get pipped to the post.

"When Arsenal were nine points clear of City we saw that the energy of the team dropped. They were slower and less determined. They weren't offensive in terms of tackling and regaining possession, except when they were pushed hard.

"I don't think Arsenal are communicating anywhere near as well as Man City are right now. Communication is about keeping a group together with the absolute focus of wanting this to happen. If there is one thing that managers can influence it is the focus and the mission of the group.

"I think momentum is significant and that is where City have been particularly good. Momentum is conceptual, it's an idea, but it has a tangible feeling to it. You literally can feel that sense of being in control.

"I often use the queen bee analogy to demonstrate leadership. She has a pheromone - like an energy - which keeps the bees happy. She travels round and touches the bees with her own pheromone.

"This keeps the whole group tight together. It's like Guardiola is the queen bee at Manchester City and has got the right pheromones going through his hive at the moment."