After goals by Julian Alvarez, Erling Haaland, Phil Foden, and an own goal by Chris Mepham, City has 55 points to Arsenal's 57, even though the London team has a game left to play. City was under pressure to win on the south coast after Arsenal had scored a 1-0 success at Leicester City and temporarily surged five points ahead at the top. Before grabbing the lead in the 15th minute when Alvarez blasted in a rebound after Haaland's deflected shot hit the crossbar, the visitors started the game brightly, controlling possession and putting together a number of deft plays.

Then, just before the half-hour mark, Haaland scored his 27th league goal of the year with a reasonably easy finish to surpass Sergio Aguero's total from the 2014–15 season and break City's record most Premier League goals scored in a season.