Manchester City defender Nathan Ake believes Arsenal remain favourites to win the Premier League title despite his side moving top of the table on Wednesday.
Reigning champions City defeated Arsenal 3-1 at Emirates Stadium to overtake their opponents at the summit for the first time since November.
Pep Guardiola's side trailed the Gunners by eight points less than a month ago, but a return to form – coinciding with a wobble from Arsenal – has seen that margin evaporate.
While City are top by virtue of a superior goal difference, Arsenal still have a game in hand and travel to the Etihad Stadium for another blockbuster fixture in April.
Asked if City are now favourites to finish above Arsenal, Ake said: "No. They still have a game in hand so they still have three points on us. We don't want to get carried away.
"We will keep doing what we are doing, go game by game and take it from there.
"We knew beforehand it was going to be a very big game and we just wanted to win the game and get the three points and we did."
City's victory was their 11th in a row against Arsenal in the league, with Guardiola having now won eight of his nine meetings with Mikel Arteta in all competitions.
Second-half goals from Jack Grealish and Erling Haaland earned the win for City after Bukayo Saka's penalty had cancelled out Kevin De Bruyne's opener.
City's quality ultimately told as they look to add to the four titles won in the past five seasons, success that Ake feels will stand them in good stead.
"We know there is still a long way to go. They have a game in hand but for us it is good to come to a tough place like this and get the win – that is important," the Netherlands international said.
"It's small margins. It was so tight and both teams can create something out of nothing. We still have a long way to go but we do have that [title-winning] experience."
Ancelotti counts Real Madrid lucky after Real Sociedad win
Carlo Ancelotti said Real Madrid were not dominant enough to deserve their 2-0 win at Real Sociedad on Saturday.
After a tight first half, which saw Los Blancos manage just two shots on target, they secured all three points thanks to second-half penalties from Vinicius Junior and Kylian Mbappe.
They were far from their best though, accumulating just 0.6 expected goals from 16 shots (six on target), while they just edged possession with 52%.
However, Ancelotti praised his players' resilience and was proud of how they were able to endure the home side's pressure.
"It was a complicated match. We didn't deserve to win, because Real Sociedad pushed us really hard," he told a press conference.
"We held on and suffered, showed character and a lot of commitment. I value that a lot because it's not easy to find commitment in a team with so much talent and quality, and today we did it.
"I leave very satisfied, and then we have to be self-critical in order to improve. It's a great opportunity for us to assess what we didn't do well but with three more points in the table."
Madrid are second on 11 points, one behind Barcelona who visit fifth-placed Girona on Sunday.
Ancelotti acknowledged his side were struggling with fatigue and poor form, but said it was to be expected due to a busy calendar, coming off the back of the international break.
The Italian said he saw improvement in Mbappe's performance as the France captain settles in at his new club, having scored his third goal for Madrid on Saturday.
"We can talk about all the problems in the world with this match, but the important thing was to get out with a win," added Ancelotti, who was without midfielders Jude Bellingham, Eduardo Camavinga, Dani Ceballos and Aurelien Tchouameni.
"We have to take into account that we are not at 100%. It's normal, we don't have four midfielders who are injured. I value a lot the work of those who have played.
"I see Mbappe fresher, more active. He's very dangerous and combines well with Vinicius and the other forwards. He is improving a lot. I liked his game a lot."
Madrid now turn their attention to their Champions League title defence which starts on Tuesday against Stuttgart.
Al-Riyadh 0-3 Al-Hilal: Mitrovic double sends hosts top
Aleksandar Mitrovic scored twice late on to secure Al-Hilal a 3-0 win over Al-Riyadh, sending them top of the Saudi Pro League on Saturday.
Salem Al-Dawsari orchestrated the victory though, scoring one and assisting both of Mitrovic's goals, while Marcos Leonardo was denied a strike of his own.
Al-Hilal dominated the first half, managing 10 shots as they smothered the hosts, but they could not find a breakthrough, only testing Milan Borjan twice.
Both sides moved through the gears in the second half though, with Ibrahim Bayesh rifling a powerful effort against the woodwork minutes after the break for the hosts.
Al-Dawsari found a way through shortly after – he made a sensational run down the left before cutting inside and dinking a lovely shot over Borjan and in off the far post.
Leonardo ran off the back of Al-Riyadh's defence and scored a chip of his own, only to have the goal ruled out as he started his run too early.
Mitrovic made sure of the three points after 80 minutes as he slotted in from a tight angle and got his second in the 100th minute to round off a good day for Al-Hilal.
Data Debrief: Al-Dawsari steals the show
After struggling to find their shooting boots in the first half, Al-Hilal can be thankful for their left-winger, who caused all sorts of problems for Al-Riyadh.
He had the most touches in the opposition box (seven), and created the most chances (four), while only Ruben Neves (27) made more passes than him in the final third (22).
'I prefer to win that way', says Guardiola after battling Brentford triumph
Pep Guardiola said he preferred Manchester City's win over Brentford as opposed to a more comfortable scoreline, confirming he is a big fan of Bees head coach Thomas Frank.
Erling Haaland's first-half brace ensured Guardiola's side maintained their perfect start to the season, but they had to come from behind to win 2-1 at the Etihad.
Yoane Wissa's goal after 22 seconds handed Brentford a shock lead, with his strike the fastest ever scored in the Premier League against the reigning champions.
It was also the first time that City had ever conceded in the opening minute at home in the competition.
Frank's side were also the last to beat Guardiola's men on home soil in any competition, winning 2-1 in November 2022, with the Citizens now unbeaten in 46 at the Etihad in all competitions since (W39 D7).
"I am a big fan of Thomas Frank. I don't remember in eight or nine years having a team playing the way they played," Guardiola said.
"We were lucky with the deflection because they deserved 1-0.
"We struggled a lot to read when to shoot and press. We were lucky to find the goals, but in the second half we were better and probably deserved to score more goals.
"We needed that to feel how difficult everything is, how difficult the Premier League is every game.
"People say City are so strong, but the Premier League is so difficult. Today was the real proof.
"I am a big fan of Brentford. They play long balls, but they have the ability to play as well.
"I give a lot of credit to my players, from where we come from in the past, but to still be able to suffer. I prefer to win that way rather than four or five nil. We need that."
City have now won back-to-back home games in the Premier League after conceding the opening goal for the first time since November 2019, while they are now unbeaten in their last eight matches (home and away) when conceding first in the competition (W7 D1).
Brentford, meanwhile, have lost five of their seven meetings with City in the top flight - the joint-most defeats they have suffered against an opponent in the competition (alongside Liverpool & Newcastle).
The Bees have now lost more Premier League away games (14) than any other side currently in the competition since the start of last season but provided the Citizens with a stern test of their title credentials.
While only managing an expected goals (xG) tally of 0.92 from their eight shots, Frank leaves the Etihad disappointed in the result, but proud of his side's performance.
"Standing here I am a combination of extremely disappointed we didn't get something out of this game but on the other hand very proud," Frank said.
"The first 25 minutes was world class, we were better than Manchester City. Second half they were more on top and made it difficult.
"A point would have been fair and not often teams can come here and say that.
"You could say if we need to win here we needed to take more of the chances we had in the first half.
"I respect Pep Guardiola very much and a lot of the reasons I do is because he made tactical changes at half-time, and then he is not too proud to put the ball down in the corner because they need to win. We must have done something right today.
"This is a fantastic group to work with and we need to keep doing this."
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