Manchester City produced a scintillating performance to comprehensively beat Arsenal for the second time in five days and extend their lead at the top of the Premier League to 16 points.

With just 10 games remaining, City need five victories to clinch the title.

“We are close. It’s in our hands, we can’t deny it,” manager Pep Guardiola said.

“These are the last steps to be champions. You keep going until the end.”

After beating the Gunners 3-0 in the Carabao Cup final on Sunday, City dominated in a toxic atmosphere at a half-full Emirates Stadium.

Bernardo Silva opened the scoring in the 15th minute, beautifully curling in a left-footed strike into the far corner after Leroy Sane’s mazy run.

David Silva finished off a fine team move in the 28th minute for City’s second before Sane did the same five minutes later.

Arsenal had the opportunity to cut the deficit shortly after half-time but Ederson saved Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s penalty.

“We played with low confidence, you could see that at the start of the game and we paid for it,” Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger said.

“We lost to a team that is the best in the country at the moment.”

The result sees City pull further away from Manchester United at the top of the table and marks Guardiola’s 100th game at the club with a win.

Arsenal, meanwhile, stay sixth, 10 points off the top four.

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Sensational City reaffirm gulf in class

City were clinical on Sunday in securing Guardiola’s first trophy at the club, although Wenger suggested the game was closer than the 3-0 scoreline suggested.

At the Emirates, particularly in the first half, City were at their free-flowing best and Wenger could have no complaints.

Sane dribbled past four defenders for the opening goal before Bernardo Silva’s accurate finish and the hosts looked helpless in attempting to prevent the following two goals.

For the second, Sane, Sergio Aguero and David Silva combined brilliantly and the Spaniard calmly fired past Petr Cech.

The third then came at the end of a flowing move with Kyle Walker squaring to German Sane from in behind the left side of Arsenal’s defence.

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“Mentally we were strong. We were clinical. We scored three outstanding goals,” Guardiola said.

“It is never easy if you are not focused against teams like Arsenal.

“We were [focused] and so far we have made an amazing Premier League season.”

Guardiola’s side are 30 points clear of Arsenal and, with their 16-point lead over Manchester United restored, could win the title in a little over a month when they face their city rivals on 7 April.

If they were to win the title that weekend it would be the earliest the Premier League title has ever been won.

Things only get worse for Wenger

Wenger was prickly in response to questions about his Arsenal future before the game and the result and performance will have done little to silence those questions.

The match was played in front of tens of thousands of empty seats in north London, surely not all as a result of the snowy weather.

Many of those who did attend booed after City’s third goal, at half-time, at full-time and when passes went astray, while there were ironic cheers when Cech claimed a catch at one point in the first half.

Nicolas Otamendi’s foul on Henrikh Mkhitaryan gave the Gunners slim hope of a comeback in the 53rd minute but the miss from the spot by record signing Aubameyang ended any chance of a contest.

Arsenal have now lost seven times in 2018 and their only route back into the Champions League looks to be winning the Europa League.

They have gone 10 games without a clean sheet in the Premier League, their longest run in the competition since February 2002.

Former Arsenal defender Martin Keown described it as a “sad evening” for Wenger on BBC Radio 5 live, adding that the Gunners were “outplayed and outfought”.

There were chants of “there’s only one Arsene Wenger” from the stands in the final stages but, to add to the Frenchman’s misery, those appeared to come from the visiting fans.

“[City] took advantage of our lack of confidence,” Wenger said. “We’re going through a difficult period, they’re going through a period where all goes well for them.

“When your confidence is not at the best, the first thing that goes is your fluidity in the movement, the spontaneous side of the game.

“You could see that tonight. I don’t deny their quality because they have top quality, but we’re going through a difficult patch at the moment. That’s part of football as well unfortunately.”

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Classic Pep on landmark night

Guardiola has now won 69 of his 100 games in charge of City and the first-half performance was one of the best he has overseen, although he denied it afterwards.

The football was spectacular but they also showcased their clinical finishing and have scored nine goals from just 13 shots on target against Arsenal this season.

Guardiola has won one trophy this season, has all but sealed another and will also be eyeing the club’s first Champions League title.

Interestingly the Spaniard’s record after 100 games in Manchester is actually worse than his starts in previous jobs with Bayern Munich and Barcelona.

City have fewer wins, more defeats, have scored fewer goals and have conceded more than Guardiola’s sides in Germany and Spain.

Man of the match – Leroy Sane (Manchester City)

Home woe for Arsenal – the best stats

• Arsenal suffered their joint-heaviest home Premier League defeat, having also lost by three-goal margins to Coventry (1993), Middlesbrough (2001) and Chelsea (twice in 2009).
• Manchester City have now scored more Premier League goals this season (82) than they scored in the entirety of last season (80).
• This was Manchester City’s biggest away win at Arsenal in any competition since a 4-0 triumph in November 1912.
• David Silva is only the third David to score on St David’s Day in the Premier League, after David Dunn (Blackburn v Man City in 2003) and David Luiz (Chelsea v Man Utd in 2011).
• This was the first time Arsenal conceded three goals in the first half of a home league game since March 1989 against Nottingham Forest.
• Sergio Aguero has had a hand in 14 goals in his past nine Premier League starts (11 goals, three assists).
• Man City have saved 11 of the past 19 penalties they have faced in all competitions (excluding penalty shootouts), with Ederson saving three of the five he has faced this season, including both in the Premier League (also against Crystal Palace).

What’s next?

Manchester City’s next match sees them face Chelsea on Sunday (16:00 GMT) at Etihad Stadium. Arsenal travel to play Chris Hughton’s Brighton earlier the same day (13:30).

Live Text

Match ends, Arsenal 0, Manchester City 3.

Second Half ends, Arsenal 0, Manchester City 3.

Foul by Leroy Sané (Manchester City).

Henrikh Mkhitaryan (Arsenal) wins a free kick on the right wing.

Corner, Arsenal. Conceded by Bernardo Silva.

Foul by Oleksandr Zinchenko (Manchester City).

Aaron Ramsey (Arsenal) wins a free kick in the defensive half.

Attempt blocked. Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked.

Attempt blocked. Gabriel Jesus (Manchester City) right footed shot from the left side of the box is blocked.

Foul by Gabriel Jesus (Manchester City).

Granit Xhaka (Arsenal) wins a free kick in the defensive half.

Substitution, Manchester City. Gabriel Jesus replaces David Silva.

Foul by Oleksandr Zinchenko (Manchester City).

Mesut Özil (Arsenal) wins a free kick on the right wing.

Substitution, Manchester City. Yaya Touré replaces Sergio Agüero.

Attempt saved. Sergio Agüero (Manchester City) right footed shot from the right side of the box is saved in the bottom left corner. Assisted by Ilkay Gündogan.

Oleksandr Zinchenko (Manchester City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.

Foul by Henrikh Mkhitaryan (Arsenal).

Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.

Foul by Laurent Koscielny (Arsenal).

Substitution, Manchester City. Oleksandr Zinchenko replaces Kyle Walker because of an injury.

Bernardo Silva (Manchester City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.

Foul by Sead Kolasinac (Arsenal).

Bernardo Silva (Manchester City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.

Foul by Aaron Ramsey (Arsenal).

Aaron Ramsey (Arsenal) wins a free kick in the attacking half.

Foul by Vincent Kompany (Manchester City).

Attempt missed. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Arsenal) right footed shot from the centre of the box is close, but misses to the left. Assisted by Aaron Ramsey following a corner.

Corner, Arsenal. Conceded by Ilkay Gündogan.

Foul by Ilkay Gündogan (Manchester City).

Danny Welbeck (Arsenal) wins a free kick in the defensive half.

David Silva (Manchester City) wins a free kick on the left wing.

Foul by Aaron Ramsey (Arsenal).

Penalty saved! Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Arsenal) fails to capitalise on this great opportunity, right footed shot saved in the bottom right corner.

Penalty conceded by Nicolás Otamendi (Manchester City) after a foul in the penalty area.

Penalty Arsenal. Henrikh Mkhitaryan draws a foul in the penalty area.

Bernardo Silva (Manchester City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.

Foul by Mesut Özil (Arsenal).

Kyle Walker (Manchester City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.

Foul by Sead Kolasinac (Arsenal).