Manchester City claimed the first major domestic trophy of the season with a 2-0 win over Arsenal in the English League Cup final at Wembley on March 23, Nico O’Reilly the unexpected match-winner with two second-half headers. The Manchester-born left-back capitalised on a fumble by Arsenal goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga to head City in front on the hour and nodded in a second goal four minutes later, sealing a decisive victory that could shift momentum in the Premier League title race. O’Reilly, 21, said it was “an unbelievable feeling to win a final and to beat this team” and added the result “will give us momentum,” speaking to Sky Sports.
The triumph was another milestone for manager Pep Guardiola, his 16th major trophy at City and a record fifth League Cup; he has 34 career titles across his spells at Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Manchester City. Guardiola praised Arsenal and manager Mikel Arteta, saying he was “really pleased because I know the opponent we played. Mikel created a team that is almost unbeatable,” and warned that winning titles is becoming increasingly difficult.
City’s victory also ended Arsenal’s bid for an unprecedented quadruple — a run that included the Premier League, Champions League and FA Cup — and may have psychological implications with Arsenal sitting nine points clear at the top of the table. City, second and with a game in hand, still have a direct confrontation with Arsenal to come at the Etihad, leaving the title race very much alive.
Arteta acknowledged the pain of the defeat, saying: “I’m very sad. It is a very hard one to take, especially for our players and our supporters… We will manage that energy in the right way and we have to go through that pain and disappointment.”
Elsewhere in the Premier League, Tottenham’s survival fight worsened as they were beaten 3-0 at home by Nottingham Forest, dropping Spurs to one place and one point above the relegation zone. Igor Jesus headed Forest in front just before halftime, Morgan Gibbs-White added a second shortly after the hour, and Taiwo Awoniyi completed the scoring in the 87th minute to secure Forest’s first league win under coach Vitor Pereira. Tottenham captain Cristian Romero admitted the season is “tough” and urged his team to treat every match “like a final.”
Tudor, who was appointed last month to rescue Spurs’ campaign, has now lost five of his seven games in charge across competitions; Tottenham have not won in the top flight in 2026, their last victory coming on Dec. 28, and have lost six of their last seven league matches. West Ham’s 2-0 defeat at Aston Villa left them in the bottom three, while Villa moved fourth — one point behind Manchester United and five clear of fifth-placed Liverpool — boosting their hopes of Champions League qualification.
In the north-east, Brian Brobbey’s 90th-minute strike earned Sunderland a 2-1 comeback win over Newcastle in the Tyne-Wear derby, completing a league double over their rivals. The match was briefly halted after a report of discriminatory abuse directed at Sunderland’s Lutsharel Geertruida; police reported tense scenes outside St. James’ Park and said one arrest was made. (AP)
Original Source: https://theshillongtimes.com/2026/03/24/man-city-dominate-arsenal-to-win-english-league-cup/
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Publish Date: 2026-03-24 07:10:00
