Arsenal are champions! Eleven moments that decided the Premier League title race in the Gunners' favour

When Manchester City arrived at the Emirates Stadium for their fifth league game of the season, they did so with their title hopes already hanging by a thread. Champions Liverpool had won each of their opening five games while Pep Guardiola's side had already lost twice, at home to Tottenham and then away at Brighton.

Arsenal, meanwhile, had won three of four having lost at Anfield in late August, meaning this September clash was labelled by many as a battle to decide whether the Gunners or City would become Liverpool's premier competition for the title. In hindsight, it goes down as one of the defining fixtures of the whole title race.

City took a ninth-minute lead through Erling Haaland and, despite Guardiola's side dropping increasingly deep in a bid to preserve their advantage, the visitors entered stoppage time looking like they would take all three points back to the Etihad with them. That was until Gabriel Martinelli got in behind the City defence in the third minute of added time and managed to send a lobbed finish past Gianluigi Donnarumma and into the net to spark wild celebrations in north London.

Though the result at the time seemed to most suit Liverpool, come the end of the campaign, that point for Arsenal - and two dropped by City - proved pivotal given how close the battle between those sides became by the end of the season.

One week later and Arsenal arrived at Newcastle buoyed by Liverpool suffering their first defeat of the season at Crystal Palace 24 hours earlier. However, it looked for long periods that they would be unable to take advantage, with Nick Woltemade's first-half header still separating the teams with six minutes left to play.

Arteta's side were not to be denied, however, and after Mikel Merino had grabbed an equaliser, Gabriel Magalhaes confirmed his place as the most potent set-piece weapon in the division when he headed home the winner in the sixth minute of stoppage time.

Arsenal had turned what looked increasingly like it would be a defeat on Tyneside into victory, with Gabriel's header sparking a run of five straight wins that, coupled with a dismal run of form for Liverpool, carried the Gunners to the top of the table.

That run of wins was ended by a 2-2 draw at Sunderland in early November, but Arsenal returned from the international break two weeks later and soon restored their positive momentum with a memorable derby win over Tottenham at the Emirates.

Eberechi Eze proved to be the hero by scoring a stunning hat-trick, and Gunners fans revelled in being able to rub the result in their north London rivals' faces given how Eze had memorably turned his back on Spurs during the summer transfer window before joining Arsenal from Crystal Palace.

The result stretched Arsenal's lead at the top of the table to six points over second-placed Chelsea, with City a further point back after their loss at Newcastle a day earlier.

Arsenal's 11-match unbeaten run in the Premier League was ended by Aston Villa in early December, but they were presented with the ideal opportunity to bounce back as they welcomed winless Wolves to the Emirates in what promised to be one of the biggest mismatches in recent top-flight history.

Games are not played on paper, however, and Arteta's side were frustrated for long periods by their struggling visitors, with their first shot on target not arriving until the 68th minute. There was more than a little fortune about their opening goal two minutes later, too, as Bukayo Saka's corner hit the post before bouncing in off Wolves goalkeeper Sam Johnstone.

Even then, Arsenal couldn't put the game to bed, and it looked as if they would be made to pay for their profligacy when Tolu Arokodare equalised in the 90th minute. There would, however, be one final twist when, four minutes into stoppage time, Saka's cross was headed into his own net by Yerson Mosquera. The home crowd greeted the final whistle with a huge sense of relief as their side avoided what would have been an embarrassing and damaging draw.

Arsenal's final game of 2025 saw them welcome in-form Aston Villa to the Emirates. Despite a slow start to the season, Unai Emery's side came into the game as genuine title challengers after a run off 11 straight wins in all competitions had catapulted them to within three points of the Gunners atop the Premier League table.

Given that form, it was perhaps unsurprising that the visitors made a fast start and enjoyed the better of the game up until half-time. Arsenal, however, emerged reenergised from the break and set about putting the game to bed as quickly as possible. Gabriel broke the deadlock three minutes into the second period as the Gunners converted from another corner before Martin Zubimendi doubled the hosts' advantage four minutes later.

Leandro Trossard and Gabriel Jesus then put the result beyond doubt with fine finishes of their own as the 4-1 defeat marked the beginning of the end of Villa's title dreams. Arsenal, meanwhile, were further boosted by Man City dropping points of their own two days later, when they were held to a goalless draw by Sunderland.

That result at the Stadium of Light left City trailing Arsenal by four points, and that gap was extended to six just a few days later as, after Declan Rice had inspired the Gunners to victory at Bournemouth, Guardiola's side could only draw 1-1 at home to manager-less Chelsea.

Fresh off the sacking of Enzo Maresca, the Blues arrived at the Etihad with rookie interim Calum McFarlane in charge, and things looked to be going City's way shortly before half-time when Tijjani Reijnders gave them a deserved lead.

The home side could not kick on in the second half, however, and Chelsea gradually grew in belief as a result. Despite that, it still came as a surprise when they grabbed an equaliser in the 94th minute, as Enzo Fernandez finished from close range at the second attempt after Donnarumma saved his initial effort. City's hopes of regaining the title were, it seemed, fading away.

Arsenal failed to take full advantage through January, however, as they went three games without a win before bouncing back with a 4-0 win at Leeds United. City, though, were expected to respond in kind the following day as they travelled to take on a woefully out-of-form Tottenham.

That expectation was only raised through the first half as goals from Rayan Cherki and Antoine Semenyo put the visitors in charge amid an atmosphere that Sky Sports summariser Gary Neville described as being more akin to 'Soccer Aid' than a high-stakes Premier League match, such was the apathy being shown among the home fans towards their team.

Given that environment, a second-half comeback felt almost impossible, but somehow Spurs roused themselves to fight back and claim a 2-2 draw thanks to a brace from Dominic Solanke, the second of which came via a superb, scorpion-kick finish from the England striker. City were unable to recover as Arsenal's lead at the top of the table returned to six points.

Still Arsenal were unable to fully take advantage, with successive away draws at Brentford and Wolves casting doubt over their capabilities to last the distance. Still, they retained a five-point lead heading into March, albeit having played a game more than City, with an away game at Brighton next on their agenda.

Arteta's side put in a less-than-vintage performance at the Amex Stadium, but Saka's ninth-minute deflected strike proved to be enough to secure a 1-0 victory that was met with wild celebrations by the travelling Gunners supporters. That reaction owed a lot to City, who were hosting Nottingham Forest at the same time, dropping more points, as they were twice pegged back by their relegation-threatened visitors to draw 2-2 at the Etihad.

Arsenal were suddenly seven clear, with belief growing that they were finally about to get over the line following three successive runners-up finishes.

Arsenal have relied on a number of players stepping up to plate at crucial points of the campaign, but perhaps the most memorable cameo of season came from 16-year-old sensation Max Dowman. With the Gunners struggling to break down Everton at the Emirates, Arteta turned to teenager Dowman, and the schoolboy did not let his manager down despite the intense pressure of the situation.

First, Dowman provided the cross that led to Viktor Gyokeres finally breaking the deadlock in the 89th minute, before Dowman himself put the result beyond doubt deep into stoppage time when he raced clear following an Everton corner and ran the ball into an empty net to become the youngest goal-scorer in Premier League history.

A memorable evening in north London got even better a few hours later when City were held to a draw by West Ham across the capital, meaning that Dowman's decisive display had helped take Arsenal nine points clear of their closest rivals.

That lead, however, was whittled down over the weeks that followed. Arsenal were beaten at home by Bournemouth before losing an epic match at the Etihad that allowed City to move to the top of the table for the first time all season when they subsequently beat Burnley three days later.

City's run to the FA Cup semi-finals allowed Arsenal the chance to open the gap up again, and after edging past Newcastle, they produced their best league performance of 2026 in swatting aside Fulham to begin May, thus putting the pressure right back on Guardiola's side as they visited Hill Dickinson Stadium for the first time to take on Everton.

Jeremy Doku gave City the lead right on half-time with a stunning strike, but the game turned in the 68th minute when Marc Guehi sold Donnarumma short with a back-pass, and Thierno Barry nipped in to equalise. Further goals from Jake O'Brien and Barry then put the Toffees in control, and though City battled back to claim a draw via goals from Haaland and Doku, they had handed the impetus back to Arsenal at the summit.

Of Arsenal's three remaining games, their trip to the London Stadium looked the most daunting given West Ham's own desperation for points in their bid for survival. As such, their meeting was a tense affair, with both sides keen to ensure they avoided any errors that could prove terminal to their aims for the run-in.

However, as the game entered its closing stages with the score still 0-0, things began to open up as a draw was no good for either team. West Ham looked sure to go ahead when Mateus Fernandes broke the Arsenal offside trap and bore down on goal, only to be denied by a superb David Raya save. That felt like a huge moment at the time, but its importance was only increased when, moments later, Leandro Trossard's deflected effort finally broke the deadlock.

That wasn't the end of the drama, however. Deep into stoppage time, West Ham thought they had levelled when Callum Wilson crashed a shot through a crowd of bodies and over the line. However, following a lengthy VAR delay, the goal was ruled out after Pablo was adjudged to have fouled Raya at the preceding corner.

The scenes in the away end at full-time confirmed how huge of a result this was for Arsenal, as they cleared what they believed to be the biggest hurdle left in their way.