Arsenal gave their Premier League title hopes a major boost this evening by beating fellow favourites Manchester City 2-1 at the Emirates Stadium.
The Gunners took a two-goal lead into half time courtesy of crisp strikes from Theo Walcott and Olivier Giroud, both of which were assisted by Mesut Ozil to take his tally for the season to 15.
The visitors pulled a goal back through Yaya Toure's stunning finish with eight minutes remaining, but Arsenal held on to move within two points of leaders Leicester City.
Here, Sports Mole looks at whether Arsenal deserved to come away with the spoils in the final Premier League match before Christmas.
Match statistics
ARSENAL
Shots: 8
On target: 5
Possession: 37%
Corners: 4
Fouls: 5
MAN CITY
Shots: 20
On target: 6
Possession: 63%
Corners: 8
Fouls: 16
Was the result fair?
Manchester City may feel that they deserved a point from this match due to the late pressure they put on the Arsenal goal, but they can't have any major complaints at coming away empty handed tonight. The stats are all heavily in City's favour, but they don't tell the true story of the game. Many of City's 20 shots came from range, while of the six on target, the only one that caused Petr Cech any serious problems was the one that flew into his top corner for Toure's goal.
The match certainly turned into an entertaining affair after what was a pretty dire opening half-hour. Both sides were cautious and cancelling each other out, but it began to come to life after Walcott's fine strike for the opener. Things may well have been different for City, though, as Kevin De Bruyne squandered a great chance moments before that. Giroud then doubled the advantage with virtually the last act of the first half, and City were left kicking themselves after that one too as it was an Eliaquim Mangala mistake that led to it.
Arsenal had the better chances towards the start of the second half and probably should have put the game to bed before the hour mark, with Aaron Ramsey and Joel Campbell twice missing one-on-one chances. City began to come into the game as it neared its conclusion and created good openings for Toure, Jesus Navas and Wilfried Bony, but they left it too late to turn things around. The performance itself wasn't quite a statement of intent from Arsenal, but it is a vital three points that they just about deserved.
Arsenal's performance
Could this be their year? They will surely have as good a chance to lift the title this term than any time since the Invincibles almost 12 years ago. This result is another big step in the right direction, and perhaps the most encouraging statistic for Arsenal fans now is that they have picked up 20 points from the last 24 available against fellow top-half teams this season - including victories over the likes of Leicester City, Manchester United and now the blue half of Manchester too.
There was nothing to separate the two teams in a dull and uneventful opening 30 minutes, but in the end the difference in the first half was summed up in a matter of seconds. A little over a minute after De Bruyne had missed a great chance, Walcott tucked away the opener, and that clinical edge was ultimately what won it for the Gunners. They ended the half with two goals from two shots and, while they were a little more wasteful in the second half, they did enough in the opening 45 minutes to pick up the victory.
Defensively, Arsene Wenger will be delighted with his side for the most part. There was a spell when they looked nervous towards the end when City's pressure grew, but aside from that they looked very comfortable throughout. That was the basis for another victory as Arsenal's in-form players did the business again, with another goal for Giroud and two more assists for Ozil. There is still a long way to go, of course, but this result may well have shifted the tag of favourites for this season's title into Arsenal's favour.
Man City's performance
In contrast to Arsenal's form against the teams in and around them in the table, this defeat means that Manchester City have taken just one point from the last 15 available against top-half teams. To a large extent, they still seem to be living off their perfect five-win start to the season when it comes to being favourites for the title as they showed very few signs of being able to lift the crown in May during tonight's performance. Vincent Kompany was again missing, and the stats prove just how important he is to the side, but his absence is still no excuse.
In fairness to the visitors, they were the more attack-minded of the two teams in the opening half-hour, although that really isn't saying much. A key moment in the match was De Bruyne's miss as City didn't create another really clear chance until the 79th minute, when Navas refused to even shoot. There was a vast improvement in the final 10 minutes when Toure took the game by the scruff of its neck, but the Ivorian - or at least someone - needed to do that sooner. Playing well for 10 minutes is not enough against a side of Arsenal's quality.
They could well have nicked an equaliser in the closing stages during what was one-way traffic, but it would have flattered them a little after 80 minutes of mediocrity. Sergio Aguero looked off the pace following his return from injury, while there was another defensive error that led to a goal for Manuel Pellegrini to bemoan. There is plenty to fix for City and, when all of their key players are fit and firing, things should improve, but right now they certainly don't deserve to be considered as favourites for the title.
Sports Mole's man of the match
Mesut Ozil: Another game, another pair of assists for the classy German, who has long shaken off his tag of being a big-money flop now. Neither of his passes for the goals were among his most probing, but he was involved in almost everything and made the most of space afforded to him by Toure's lack of tracking. He now has 15 assists for the season and, with more than half of the campaign still to come, Thierry Henry's record of 20 looks destined to be blown away.
Biggest gaffe
Not for the first time this season, this goes to Mangala. The central defender gave the ball away carelessly inside his own half right on the stroke of half time, and he was duly punished when Giroud drilled Arsenal's second - and what proved to be the winner - through the legs of Joe Hart.
Referee performance
The opening half-hour was not pretty, and that was partly to do with Andre Marriner awarding a number of free kicks. However, the referee soon began to let the game flow, which helped to vastly improve it as a spectacle.
What next?
Arsenal: Arsenal will look to make it five wins on the bounce in all competitions when they take on Southampton at St Mary's on Boxing Day.
Man City: City, meanwhile, host Sunderland at the Etihad Stadium on Boxing Day as they look to bounce back from this defeat.
Barney Corkhill
