Manchester City vs Arsenal

The dramatic victory of Manchester City over Arsenal was worthy of a title showdown. Both managers have one hand on each ear of the trophy, and their tug of war could last till the final second of the season. A down-to-the-wire finish is a spectacular advertisement for the Premier League, which brags of being the most intense competition in the world. But it also reflects a growing divide. City (6) and Liverpool (2) have shared the plaudits in the last eight seasons, with Arsenal wrapping up three successive second-place finishes. The league is transforming into what English pundits disparagingly call others: A “farmers’ league”, where the real competition is confined to two sides. It’s not new for a handful of clubs to dominate in one country, but most leagues were more competitive in the past. In the last decade, EPL had five different champions. The one before had only three, but in every season, at least till the midpoint, three to four clubs vied for the title. Part of the reason is the lofty standards City have set under Pep Guardiola. They have, inadvertently, exposed the mediocrity of the rest. Monopolies eventually unbalance leagues, like La Liga, or worse, the Bundesliga and French Ligue. Serie A has been an exception, but old-timers would point to how the Milan-Juventus duopoly diluted its competitiveness. That only two EPL sides progressed to the quarterfinals of the Champions League is a punch to the ribs of the English boast. Arsenal could, perhaps, break the City-Liverpool duopoly and inject a freshness into the EPL. Five weeks remain to salvage it from transforming into another boring, predictable league.