05/19/26 03:33:00
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05/19 15:32 CDT Arsenal wins its first Premier League title in 22 years after
Man City draws with Bournemouth
Arsenal wins its first Premier League title in 22 years after Man City draws
with Bournemouth
By JAMES ROBSON
AP Soccer Writer
Arsenal was crowned Premier League champion for the first time since 2004 on
Tuesday after Manchester City drew 1-1 with Bournemouth.
The result put an to end Pep Guardiola's title challenge with one round of the
season go.
City needed to win at the Vitality Stadium to take it down to the final game of
the campaign on Sunday. But the draw left Arsenal with an unassailable
four-point lead at the top, ending its 22-year wait for the title.
Arsenal fans celebrated wildly outside its Emirates Stadium as news of the
score line came through.
City threatened another twist when Erling Haaland scored in stoppage time to
equalize Junior Kroupi's first-half strike, but it was too late to find a
winner.
Mikel Arteta's players can now stand alongside club icons Thierry Henry, Dennis
Bergkamp and Ian Wright, who previously led the club to the summit of English
soccer. And Arsenal's current class could yet break new ground by winning the
Champions League for the first time in its history later this month.
Thoughts of this month's final against defending champion Paris Saint-Germain
can be put on the backburner for now.
Now is at time for celebration and relief for Arteta after finishing runner-up
in the league three years running.
In back-to-back seasons in 2023 and '24, he watched as Guardiola's City chased
down Arsenal's lead to be crowned champion. And another chance was missed last
year when coming second to Liverpool.
Once again Arsenal has led the way for most of this campaign and despite seeing
its points advantage ebb away during a gripping run-in, it has finally managed
to get over the line after a decades-long wait.
Arsenal's last champion was the so-called "Invincibles" team of 2004, which
went an entire campaign without losing in the league.
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