NOTTINGHAM: Manchester City overcame relegation-threatened Nottingham Forest 2-0 on Sunday to close to within one point of Premier League leaders Arsenal and keep the destiny of the title race in their own hands.

Mikel Arteta’s team had thrown down the gauntlet earlier in the day, fending off a Tottenham fightback to win 3-2, briefly moving four points clear of City.

But the champions -- chasing an unprecedented fourth straight English top-flight title -- saw off a spirited Forest, with goals from Josko Gvardiol and Erling Haaland in either half.

Forest -- fighting for their lives -- will rue missed chances, including two clear-cut opportunities for Chris Wood.

City remain firm favourites to land yet another league title with four games remaining -- one more than Arsenal.

Third-placed Liverpool are four points behind City having played a game more and are realistically out of the title picture.

Forest, last month docked four points for breaches of Premier League financial rules, remain just one point outside the relegation zone with three games to go.

Pep Guardiola’s City, who came into the match on the back of a 30-match unbeaten run in all competitions, did not have it all their own way at the City ground.

The home had a chance to take a shock lead in the opening seconds but Neco Williams failed to make clean contact from close range.

Forest looked dangerous when they came forward, with Nathan Ake forced to stretch to keep the ball off the toes of Callum Hudson-Odoi.

But City took the lead in the 32nd minute when Gvardiol powered home a Kevin De Bruyne corner at the near post.

Forest, undaunted, continued to test City but Wood missed a glorious chance

to level from close range when found

by substitute Gonzalo Montiel, getting his feet in a tangle.

Haaland, who has been short of his razor-sharp best in recent weeks, came on for Jack Grealish shortly after the hour mark.

He eased City’s nerves minutes later, latching onto a De Bruyne through ball, evading Murillo before finding the net for his 21st Premier League goal of the season.

Bidding to stay one step ahead of Manchester City in the title race, Arteta’s side silenced the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium with a three-goal blast before half-time.

Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg’s own goal put Arsenal ahead before Bukayo Saka and Kai Havertz netted to leave Arsenal in complete control.

Cristian Romero and Son Heung-min struck for Tottenham after the interval to set up a nervous finish, but Arsenal clung on by their finger tips.

Arsenal emerged from a frantic start to snatch the lead in the 15th minute.

Saka’s corner curled into the six-yard box, where Hojbjerg tried to head clear in front of Arsenal’s Takehiro Tomiyasu but instead diverted the ball into his own net.

Romero should have equalised when Arsenal keeper David Raya misjudged James Maddison’s free-kick, allowing the defender to rise for a close-range header that he somehow guided against the post rather than into the empty net.

Micky van de Ven thought he had drawn Tottenham level when he slammed home after Pedro Porro’s shot deflected into his path, but VAR intervened to rule the centre-back was marginally offside.

Arteta’s men celebrated the decision as though they had scored themselves and they were doing exactly that in the 27th minute.

Havertz floated a superb long pass to Saka on the right flank and the winger drove at Ben Davies before cutting inside to beat Guglielmo Vicario with a clinical low strike from 12 yards.

Arsenal were ruthless in front of goal and Havertz grabbed their third with a well-worked corner routine in the 38th minute.

As Tottenham adopted zone-marking positions, a group of Arsenal players including Havertz were unmarked as they made late runs into the area, giving the German space to finish off Declan Rice’s corner with a close-range header.

But Tottenham refused to throw in the towel and Romero reduced the deficit in the 64th minute, seizing on Raya’s comically bad pass to fire home from the edge of the area.

Rice set up the needlessly tense finale for Arsenal with a rash foul on Davies, conceding a penalty that Son drilled past Raya in the 87th minute.

In Sunday’s other early kick-off, Bournemouth beat Brighton 3-0 through goals from Marcos Senesi, Enes Unai and Justin Kluivert.

Late on Saturday, Idrissa Gueye’s strike at the hour mark secured Everton a 1-0 win over Brentford, confirming the club’s survival from relegation.

Published in Dawn, April 29th, 2024