Arsenal suffer setback in Premier League title race

Sunday April 12, 2026

Arsenal’s Viktor Gyokeres (R) celebrates scoring with Martin Zubimendi during the English Premier League match between Arsenal and Bournemouth in London, Britain, April 11, 2026. (Xinhua)

Arsenal’s Premier League title challenge took a damaging blow on Saturday as Bournemouth arrived in north London and left with a 2-1 victory, extending their unbeaten run to 12 matches in the top flight.

The defeat leaves Arsenal nine points clear of Manchester City, though Pep Guardiola’s side still has two games in hand. City travel to Chelsea on Sunday before hosting Arsenal next weekend in a fixture that could further shape the championship race.

Eli Junior Kroupi opened the scoring for Bournemouth in the 17th minute, finishing from close range after a corner, before Viktor Gyokeres pulled Arsenal level from the penalty spot in the 35th minute.

The decisive moment came in the 74th minute, when Alex Scott stayed composed to beat goalkeeper David Raya after a sharp one-touch passing move from Bournemouth.

Liverpool climbed to fifth place with a 2-0 win at home over Fulham, with 17-year-old Rio Ngumoha and Mohamed Salah both on target.

Brentford looked set for a significant home win against Everton after Igor Thiago struck twice, but Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall’s stoppage-time equalizer denied Keith Andrews’ team all three points in a contest they led on two occasions. Thiago had put Brentford ahead with a third-minute penalty, only for Beto to respond with an equalizer.

Mats Wieffer scored both goals as Brighton secured a 2-0 away win at Burnley, a result that all but confirms Burnley’s return to the Championship.

West Ham United moved out of the bottom three in emphatic fashion on Friday night, sweeping Wolverhampton Wanderers aside 4-0.

Konstantinos Mavropanos and Valentin Castellanos both scored twice for the Hammers, while Jarrod Bowen supplied two assists in a crucial win that gave West Ham three valuable points.