Man City notebook - Ake latest, Guardiola's aggressive solution, Bernardo bonus and banner anger

Manchester City are relying on a favour from others to win a fourth successive Premier League title after they could only draw with Arsenal at the Etihad on a Sunday.

The first goalless draw at the stadium since September 2021 left the title out of City's hands, with Liverpool's victory earlier in the day giving them a two-point advantage over Arsenal and a three-point lead over City. Guardiola said the Reds were now "clear favourites" to win the title in Jurgen Klopp's final season.

It was also the first time City had failed to score in a home game in 57 attempts, a stat that Mikel Arteta quickly rolled out in his post-match media obligations. Arsenal have stopped the Blues from scoring in both league games this season and you can see why he would be proud of that achievement.

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Ake latest

There was plenty of confusion when the City bus rolled into Etihad around an hour and 20 minutes before kick-off on Sunday. Pep Guardiola had ruled John Stones out on Friday and said Ederson was "much, much better", but it was Stones who strolled into the stadium while Ederson was nowhere to be seen.

The Brazilian goalkeeper has trained and it's understood he hasn't suffered a setback, but wasn't quite fit enough for this game. The fact Stones didn't come on and wasn't called on to replace Nathan Ake might suggest his place amongst the subs was ceremonial and that he was never likely to feature.

Ake's early withdrawal is another defensive injury blow for City and Guardiola didn't know the extent of the problem when he spoke to the media post-match. His next press