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Manchester City has secured the English Premier League title for an unprecedented fourth consecutive year after Pep Guardiola’s expertly coached team, assembled using Abu Dhabi’s vast riches, clinched a hard fought campaign with a victory over West Ham.
Second-placed Arsenal managed to keep the pressure on Manchester City until the last 45 minutes of the season, but a 2-1 victory over Everton failed to secure the title for the London club, which had started the day two points behind the league leader.
Mikel Arteta, the Arsenal manager, will be praised for the title run, having added strength and depth to a team of likeable youngsters with players including former West Ham star midfielder Declan Rice.
But Guardiola can now claim one of the biggest achievements in English football. The moment will be especially sweet for many fans in parts of the club’s home city given that the best run for Alex Ferguson — revered former manager of arch-rival Manchester United — was only three consecutive crowns.
Arsenal had hoped for their first league title since 2004 — and to be the first London team to win the country’s elite division since Chelsea in 2017 — but Manchester City had always been favourites. The race was tight enough for the Premier League to send trophies and medals to each of the team’s grounds, however.
Manchester City has now won the title six times in seven years after a five-month unbeaten Premier League streak, making local heroes of the likes of Phil Foden, Joško Gvardiol and Rodri
However, City’s multiyear dominance has also led to questions about the competitiveness of the league, with many teams now resigned to fighting it out for lesser European and mid-table places.
Guardiola argues that United and Chelsea have spent more than City in recent seasons, with Arsenal also investing heavily in new players after a successful run last season.
But the Premier League team’s 115 alleged breaches of financial rules over nine seasons will hang over its achievement, with a decision expected next year by an independent regulatory commission that will in effect pass judgment on Sheikh Mansour’s ownership of the club.
Manchester City has always denied any wrongdoing. The alleged breaches include whether inaccurate financial information was provided to the Premier League about how players and managers were paid.
Arsenal has also been in the kind of form that normally claims titles, even if City’s dominant run kept it on top. Even so, the London team’s owner, US sports mogul Stan Kroenke, can take credit for a sustainable and steady rebuilding after the end of the successful Arsène Wenger era.
The other Champions League places were secured by Liverpool and Aston Villa before the last weekend of the season, with Tottenham Hotspur able to claim a Europa League slot after beating Sheffield United 3-0.
At the other end of the league, confirmation of relegation for Luton Town, Sheffield United and Burnley showed how difficult it is for clubs operating with much smaller budgets to compete with the extravagantly funded clubs at the top.
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