PREMIER LEAGUE TITLE RACE PREDICTION: Who will lift the trophy on May 28? 

The Premier League returns this weekend, which means the enthralling title race between Arsenal and Manchester City is approaching the home straight. 

League leaders Arsenal sit eight points clear with 10 games to go but champions City have a game in hand and still must welcome Mikel Arteta’s side to the Etihad next month. 

Pep Guardiola’s side are snapping at their heels, having put the fear of God in rival teams just before the international break after barnstorming 6-0 and 7-0 wins against Burnley and RB Leipzig respectively.

But since the start of the season, momentum has been growing in north London as Mikel Arteta’s dazzlingly in-form side secure results week-in week-out with their fluid and creative football. 

Can Arsenal stay the course to win their first league title in nearly 20 years? Or will City’s tried-and-tested experience win them a third consecutive title – drawing them level with crosstown rival Manchester United’s record? 

Here, Sportsmail takes you through both contenders’ remaining fixtures to predict who will lift the trophy on May 28.   

Gameweek 29

Manchester City v Liverpool – Prediction: 3-0 to City

Jurgen Klopp’s men handed City their first loss of the season back in October with Mohamed Salah’s sublime individual goal proving the difference in a win that came amidst a string of middling results. 

Guardiola does have a few injury concerns with Erling Haaland’s fitness still unclear as he deals with a groin injury while Phil Foden is definitely ruled out.

But, at home at the Etihad after a well-managed international break, City should be able to take their revenge emphatically against their low-spirited visitors. 

Arsenal v Leeds – Prediction: 3-1 to Arsenal 

Leeds have had an international break to forget and the possibility of missing players such as Tyler Adams and Maximilian Wober could make it the worst possible time to meet the league leaders. 

That said, with their attack firing, getting on the scoresheet shouldn’t be ruled out and things are starting to get a little nervy for Arsenal. 

But Arteta’s men made light work against the team on the road in December, and will face tougher challenges on their hold at the top of the table.  

1. Arsenal – 72 points

2. Manchester City – 64 points

Gameweek 30 

Southampton v Manchester City – Prediction: 2-1 to City

The Saints showed the grit and verve that will be necessary if they are to avoid relegation in the final match before the break – their 3-3 draw against Tottenham was the proverbial straw that broke Antonio Conte’s back. 

Guardiola’s men thumped Southampton at the Etihad but the Saints could prove a more determined prospect at St Mary’s, even if City’s quality will likely hand them the three points. 

Liverpool v Arsenal – Prediction: 2-2 

There’s sure to be a little sting and needle in this tie after the acrimonious 3-2 victory that Arsenal swiped at the Emirates at the start of the season and Arteta’s meltdown on the touchline last year.

By early April, Liverpool might once again be benefitting from the services of a fully-firing Luis Diaz and returning Thiago Alcantara, plus their record against teams above them this season is strong.

The Reds will feel the benefit of an Anfield-based clash and, if they’re still in the hunt for a top-four spot, will back themselves to dent Arsenal’s title charge.

1. Arsenal – 73

2. Manchester City – 67 

Gameweek 31

Manchester City v Leicester – Prediction: 2-1 to City

Things could get interesting here, with City’s first Champions League quarter-final set to be played four days earlier. 

City are competing on three fronts, with the FA Cup also still in contention, whereas after their Europa League knockout, Arsenal’s sights are firmly fixed on Premier League glory. 

City have enviable squad depth but with the gap between the two teams tipped to shorten to six points, Guardiola is unlikely to pass up the opportunity to field his strongest sides.

That being said, Leicester’s track record this season against ‘Big Six’ opposition both at home and on the road don’t convince. 

West Ham v Arsenal – Prediction: 2-0 to Arsenal

This match is a must-win for any potential champion-in-waiting.

West Ham are no more stable than when Arsenal overturned them 3-1 earlier in the season, and David Moyes remains under-threat.

Unless the Hammers experience an unanticipated new-manager bounced, this is a rote victory for their London rivals. 

1. Arsenal – 76

2. Manchester City – 70 

Gameweek 32

Arsenal v Southampton – Prediction: 3-0 to Arsenal

A ground-out 1-1 draw was one of the final bright spots then-manager Ralph Hasenhuttl was able to experience before he was sacked by Southampton in November. 

Arsenal have the joint-best home record in the league and Southampton are not likely to have had their spirits lifted by a recent run-in with City. 

1. Arsenal – 79

2. Manchester City – 70 

Gameweek 33 

Manchester City v Arsenal – Prediction: 2-2

Winning will be non-negotiable for the home side as rearranged fixtures widen their proximity to the table-toppers. 

City’s 3-1 win at the Emirates will have made for an awkward mentor-mentee run-in between Guardiola and Arteta, and the student will be looking to waste no time in redressing the balance. 

This could be where Arsenal’s single-minded fixture list proves the difference. Like all big-ticket ties, this blockbuster meeting is most likely to finish with points shared. 

1. Arsenal – 80

2. Manchester City – 71 

Gameweek 34

Arsenal v Chelsea – Prediction: 3-1 to Arsenal

It is hard to predict which iteration of Graham Potter’s side will turn up on any given day. Is it the team that stuns Borussia Dortmund that travels to the Emirates that day, or will Arsenal welcome the side that failed to find an equaliser against bottom-placed Southampton? 

Should Potter stay at the helm in west London, time will be the greatest tonic for his Chelsea side. It’s not unbelievable to think that the Blues will be a more stable and successful side by the end of April, regardless of what Real Madrid has thrown at them in the Champions League, but beating Arteta’s side will likely be a bridge too far.  

Fulham v Manchester City – Prediction: 3-1 to City 

As he usually does, Erling Haaland proved the difference during their first meeting this season, breaking the deadlock at the last after City played the majority of the match with 10 men following Joao Cancelo’s early sending off. 

Aleksandar Mitrovic will be back and firing for Fulham after serving his three-match ban for pushing referee Chris Kavanagh, and a Europa Conference League spot might still be in play for the side – but getting on the scoresheet might still be Fulham’s most realistic aspiration for the tie. 

Manchester City v West Ham – Prediction: 4-0 to City

A double match week shouldn’t prove the greatest chore for City, who can end their week at home against manageable opposition. 

Their meeting at the start of the season introduced Haaland to the Premier League in monstrous fashion, and another competent performance at home should narrow their gap to the league leaders. 

1. Arsenal – 83

2. Manchester City – 77 

Gameweek 35

Manchester City v Leeds – Prediction: 2-0 to City

Should City knock Bayern Munich out of the Champions League, this fixture could yet be moved, but even a cluttered fixture list should see the Manchester side swipe the win with minimal fuss. 

Leeds look particularly vulnerable at the back and even though they will be battling for their Premier League future, there’s surely no way they’ll win at the Etihad. 

Newcastle v Arsenal – Prediction: 1-1

Arsenal will be grateful for their lack of distractions going into their next two fixtures. 

Eddie Howe’s side rarely make a trip to St James’ Park comfortable for visiting sides, and after an inconsistent start to 2023, Newcastle are going in confidence. 

Likely to be another side deeply motivated by the prospect of long-awaited European competition next season, the Magpies will set out to thoroughly frustrate the Gunners. 

1. Arsenal – 84

2. Manchester City – 80 

Gameweek 36

Arsenal v Brighton – Prediction: 3-2 to Arsenal

The ‘Big Six’ bogeymen thumped Arsenal when they met in the Carabao Cup last year but after the winter break, Arteta’s men exacted their revenge on the road. 

Roberto De Zerbi’s side has looked bullet-proof for large swathes of the season, but as the title race narrows, expect Arsenal to scrap until the final whistle. 

Everton v Manchester City – Prediction: 1-0 to City

The startling draw between the two sides in December was a stay of execution for then-manager Frank Lampard, but the axe was eventually swung, and the prospect of Sean Dyche-led Everton at home is an altogether more curious one. 

The side have recorded mixed results to say the least but as the season draws to a close, they are unlikely to see their home win over Arsenal that heralded the start of Dyche’s reign repeated. 

1. Arsenal – 87

2. Manchester City – 83 

Gameweek 37 

Manchester City v Chelsea – Prediction: 2-1 to City

These teams have met enough in the past nine months for assumptions to be made with some confidence. 

Chelsea have endured losses in the league, Carabao Cup and FA Cup to the Cityzens, and should the universe have a particularly acute sense of humour, they could conceivably meet again in the Champions League. 

Chelsea should win eventually, but it’s not going to be as the gap closes to four points.  

Nottingham Forest v Arsenal – Prediction: 3-0 to Arsenal

Steve Cooper’s Forest are far more likely to get their ‘Big Six’-beating result out of their system against Chelsea the previous game week.

Arsenal may not put five past the side, as they did in October, but things are becoming very serious indeed at the top of the table. 

1. Arsenal – 90

2. Manchester City – 86 

Gameweek 38

Arsenal v Wolves – Prediction: 2-0 to Arsenal

Julen Lopetegui’s assignment in November turned Wolves’ season around but recent results have confirmed their resolutely mid-table status in 2023.

With Premier League glory in the cross-hairs for the first time in nearly twenty years, Arsenal – whose title charge has been in part defined by their ability to snatch the result when a draw seems a foregone conclusion – will take the points here too. But will it be enough?  

Brentford v Manchester City – Prediction: 2-1 to City

The title could hinge on the Ivan Toney question – will Brentford’s lynchpin be able to take part in their final match? Will he have been able to take part in many, or any ties in the business end of the season – and how have Brentford learnt to do without him? 

With a ban due to the player’s breach of the FA’s betting rules looming, but as yet unknown, Brentford’s fate hangs in the balance. No club has been more capable of handing Guardiola’s side an upset. City were tumbled at the Etihad by Thomas Frank’s side in November, and their record at home is strong. 

But City haven’t lost their final game of the season since 2013. Through gritted teeth, the visitors take all three points. 

But… there’s one more fixture unaccounted for. 

Not yet scheduled: Brighton v Manchester City – Prediction: 2-1 to City

This fixture is a casualty of City’s FA Cup run, and has yet to be slipped into the season. Where ends up could undo a string of the above predictions, but considered objectively, this is a tie that the visitors could edge. 

De Zerbi was just finding his feet when Brighton made the trip north to be skittled 3-1 in October, but City will look more than capable of at least an attempt of their repeat performance.  

1. Arsenal – 93

2. Manchester City – 92 

City have narrowed the current gap between the two teams but they are forced to take a bitter swig of their own medicine, having left Liverpool dangling in similar position in 2019 and 2022. 

Consistency has been Arteta’s watchword this season and faith in his Arsenal side and his ideas, as well as their blistering first team form and sole focus on the Premier League should return the trophy to north London after its prolonged absence.