FA PREMIER LEAGUE 

ARSENAL 5 (Odegaard 2, Partey 54, Lewis-Skelly 65, Havertz 78, Nwaneri 93
MANCHESTER CITY 1 (Haaland 54)

FEW would have predicted this result at the start of the season.

Even fewer would have foreseen that such an emphatic win – a shift in power, as Wenger used to say – did not all but confirm Arsenal as champions for the first time in more than 20 years.

But no need to dwell on the bigger picture tonight.

Arsenal fans are in dreamland after a blistering second half performance that saw Manchester City ripped to shreds and humiliated.

After several quite turgid entertainment at the Emirates – watching an increasingly desperate side try to break down stubborn defensive walls – this was refreshingly exciting battle between two sides trying to win.

Miles Lewis-Skelly’s strike was the pick of the joyous carnival of goals – and a picture-book moment for the academy star.

After rolling into the box on the half turn, he cut back on John Stones sending him flailing to the floor, and smashed it past the hapless Ortega.

He wound off and sat down in the Lotus position meditation pose, eyes closed with thumbs and fingers index touching, in a celebration designed to troll Erling Haaland.

Haaland – who had made that celebration his own – famously had in the melee after the 2-2 at City last summer ordered Arsenal players to “stay humble” and asked of Lewis-Skelly: “Who are you?”

On Miles-Skelly’s goal, Arteta said afterwards: “I wasn’t expecting it! It’s something I’ve wanted him to deliver more.”

Martin Odegaard opened the scoring after 2 minutes, just about sweeping it in after Kai Havertz had unselfishly – and a little surprisingly – squared to him from a shooting position.

The decision to pass smacked of a striker low on confidence – and in the first half his woes would deepen with one of the worst misses ever seen at the Emirates.

From around the penalty spot, with so much time to pick his spot and no pressure, he slashed wide of the post.

He would – when the game was all over – score with a clinical finish in the second half, bent in Saka style to the far corner.

No need to beat up on Havertz after a result like that – but if it had been a draw, he would not have slept tonight.

Gabi Martinelli had the ball in the net in the first half – although was a good yard off side.

But despite this, Arsenal were a little fortunate to go into the break ahead with City perhaps just edging the play

David Raya made a magnificent save to deny Gvardiol’s header from a corner, palming it onto the crossbar.

It rebounded back into play, fortuitously just behind Haaland who was poised to bundle home.

The hulk did get his goal in the second half – with a typical leap and nod in from a Savinho cross, following a good passing move by City.

But the away fans were silenced within seconds of the restart as Thomas Partey’s 20 yard effort took a huge deflection off John Stones.

Partey, along Declan Rice, were sensational and totally dominated the midfield with strength and also aggressive forward passes.

City came to Arsenal as if they were still in swashbuckling form, playing a very high line, and leaving space all over the park.

But gone are the days when Arsenal give City too much respect and take an overly tight approach.

And now Pep has been schooled by his apprentice.

After the match, he said: “The commitment from the players was extraordinary, then the last twenty minutes we fall down.”

Miles-Skelly had got the crowd going when he won a big shoulder to shoulder challenge with Phil Foden.

Bernardo Silva got away with a ridiculous tackle on Rice that should have have been a booking.

Odegaard was booked for going mad at the ref as tempers flared.

Deep in the second half – with Arsenal suddenly playing football in another dimension – Gabriel tried a ridiculous bicycle kick in a moment of magic.

Everyone was losing it even before Ethan Nwaneri scored a peach in injury time to make it 5-1.

He got a huge amount of bend on his shot, while keeping the power levels up too.

It won’t be long before he is starting surely.

Saka and Nwaneri with a decent striker would be a formidable front line.

Jack Grealish was a £100million unused substitute for City.

Liverpool don’t look like slipping up, but tonight was one to savour for all Arsenal fans.

And next up in the league its Spurs.

There was a protest before the game against Arsenal’s big money sponsorship deal with Rwanda following a military invasion of the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Congo authorities have written to the club asking for the sponsorship to be terminated.

A full page advert in the programme invited fans to book a safari holiday in Rwanda.

Arsenal: Raya, Timber, Saliba, Gabriel, Lewis-Skelly (Calafiori 85), Partey, Rice, Odegaard (Merino 82, Trossard (Nwaneri 83), Martinelli, Havertz (Sterling 89)
Subs not used: Neto, Tierney, Kiwior, Zinchenko, Jorginho

Man City: Ortega, Stones, Gvardiol, Akanji, Nunes, Kovacic, Silva, Foden (McAtee 71), Savinho, Mamoush (De Bruyne 71), Haaland
Subs not used: Carson, Grealish, Gundogan, Reis, Khusanov, O’Reilly, Lewis