Tuesday's 2-0 victory over Tottenham by Premier League champions Manchester City marked a significant step towards a historic fourth consecutive English title as Erling Haaland scored twice to calm the team's nerves.
The Norwegian striker opened the score for City at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in the second half, tapping in a pinpoint cross from Kevin De Bruyne.
And just minutes after Son Heung-min's incredible late penalty save by backup goalie Stefan Ortega, he scored a late goal to give the visitors the victory.
With the victory, Pep Guardiola's squad now leads the table by two points over Arsenal.
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Regardless of the Gunners' outcome against Everton, a victory over West Ham on Sunday at the Etihad will cement their place as champions for a record-breaking fourth season.
In the history of the English Premier League, no team has ever won four championships in a row.
Aston Villa's fourth-place finish in the Champions League ensures that, should Spurs lose, they will play in Europe's premier competition next season, along with City, Arsenal, and Liverpool.
Kyle Walker, a defender for City, cautioned that the work was not yet done.
"We prepare, we recover and West Ham is another final and hopefully we can go and make history for this great club," he told Sky Sports.
"It is not a job done by a million miles. Hopefully, we can get the win. If I didn't enjoy the pressure, I would be in the wrong job and the wrong team.
"Last night, I couldn't sleep. They tried to set fireworks off but we weren't there, they missed us. I can't describe the feeling when we went 2-0 up."
Before the match in north London, home supporters had a heated argument about whether they wanted their side to lose so that City would be in the lead and Arsenal would be their closest rivals.
In the first few minutes, "Stand up if you hate Arsenal" was a chant heard throughout the stadium as Spurs fans made their feelings toward their bitter local rivals evident.
Tottenham had the first opportunity to score when Ederson, the City goalkeeper, turned over a hard shot from Rodrigo Bentancur. Then, Phil Foden's close-range attempt was saved by Guglielmo Vicario, the Spurs goalkeeper.
Spurs struggled to put the finishing touches on their attacking moves, while City, who had not lost in 21 league games going into the game, lacked their fluid best.
