Man City send Arsenal title statement with Chelsea mauling - 5 talking points

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Manchester City sliced the gap to Arsenal to just six points with a ruthless demolition of Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.

Marc Cucurella looked as though he had given Chelsea a dream start but saw his strike chalked off by the linesman's flag. Fellow fullback Nico O'Reilly had better luck as he gave City the lead minutes into the second half.

Another City defender was then on the scoresheet moments later, with Marc Guehi firing home. Jeremy Doku got City's third after he picked Moises Caicedo's pocket and slotted home.

City's win moves them move to just six points behind the Gunners with a game in hand and a clash against the North London side yet to come. Chelsea in the meantime remain in sixth.

Here are all of the talking points from Stamford Bridge:

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There were cheers in both West and North London when Spanish fullback Cucurella blasted past Donnarumma to seemingly give Chelsea the lead. But his celebrations were cut very short, having been denied by an offside flag.

The fullback had drifted just centimetres offside when he latched onto Joao Pedro's clever pass and fired into the City net.

It was a fantastic move but VAR concurred with the decision, to the frustration of both Chelsea and Arsenal .

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City defender O'Reilly has become one of the stars of Man City's side this season. And just like at Wembley a few weeks ago against Arsenal, the young defender dealt another brutal blow to the Gunners with the opener against Chelsea.

He had crept forwards and escaped the attentions of Andre Santos to latch onto Rayan Cherki's cross and thump a powerful header past Robert Sanchez.

O'Reilly now seems to be a shoe-in for the England World Cup squad.

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City were dominant from the moment that O'Reilly's header found the net and they made that tell just moments later. Rayan Cherki, who was brilliant throughout the afternoon, produced a jinking run on the edge of the penalty area and delivered a stunning pass into Guehi.

The former Crystal Palace man showed the composure to take a touch before finishing low into the far corner.

Both Cherki and Guehi already look to be inspired signing from City but if they manage to get Guardiola's side over the line in the race for the title, they will become bargains.

Chelsea haven't beaten Man City at Stamford Bridge since 2018 when Maurizio Sarri was in charge - nine managers ago. And that miserable run showed no sign of ending when Doku plundered City's third.

And it was a goal of Chelsea's own making. Sanchez attempted to pass out to Caicedo - the midfielder not having as much time as he thought. Doku was alive to pick his pocket and then coolly slotted home.

And while the result itself is disappointing, the defeat also puts a massive dent into their hopes of qualifying for the Champions League .

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This could well be a decisive weekend in the Premier League title race. Even before Arsenal kicked off against Bournemouth , the Gunners were licking their lips at potentially stretching their advantage further.

But it couldn't have gone worse. Mikel Arteta's side are now just six points clear and that gap could well be as low as three come next weekend.

Of course, there is still time for the momentum to swing back in Arsenal's favour but it's tough to envisage City letting up now that they've got themselves into an excellent position.