Man City’s next six Premier League fixtures compared with Arsenal, Manchester United and rivals

Manchester City will be reeling after allowing Arsenal to retake the lead in the Premier League title race following Saturday’s 1-1 draw with Nottingham Forest.

The Blues had retaken pole position from the Gunners after Wednesday’s win at the Emirates but Mikel Arteta’s triumph at Aston Villa means his side jump back above the champions by two points with a game in hand.

City are still to welcome Arsenal to the Etihad in the Premier League but have eight matches to play until then, excluding European and FA Cup matches. The congestion of fixtures could play a part in the title race with Arsenal in the Europa League knockouts but out of the FA Cup thanks to last month’s loss to City.

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Pep Guardiola’s men are chasing that elusive Champions League trophy and will have to play an added seven games in order to do so. Meanwhile, Arsenal’s Europa League ambitions will likely take a back seat amid their league intentions with a Champions League spot surely now a dead cert.

Here is how their next six Premier League fixtures look.

Bournemouth (A) - February 25

Newcastle United (H) - March 4

Crystal Palace (A) - March 11

West Ham United (H) - March 19

Liverpool (H) - April 1

Southampton (A) - April 8

Verdict: City will be confident of three points away at struggling Bournemouth and could go back to the top given Arsenal face a stern test away at Leicester. They will fancy their chances of a win against Newcastle while a good result against Crystal Palace is expected despite Selhurst Park always being a difficult place to visit.

An expected win over West Ham before a traditionally hard game against Liverpool will be made easier by their home status while City will look