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| Mesut Ozil shone as Arsenal boosted their title hopes with victory over Manchester City |
ARSENAL took apart Manchester City last night – and Mesut Ozil insists the victory has fuelled the belief they can end the club’s 12-year wait for the Premier League title.
The 2-1 win at the Emirates Stadium saw Arsene Wenger’s team move to within two points of leaders Leicester and open up a four-point gap to a sloppy City side in third spot.
Ozil was again the architect of the win, providing the final passes for Theo Walcott and Olivier Giroud to score and take his tally to 15 assists for the season.
“Of course we believe," the Germany international said. "If you see the games against the big clubs, we have won against them so we know our quality if we can play our game.
“So we can win the league. We can win the title.
“We had a lot of difficult games but we are happy to win. All the team are happy, and me too. I am happy to help the team, you see that on the pitch. I try to give my best.”
Walcott paid tribute to his team-mate – who played having been suffering with a chest infection – and said: “Mesut Ozil is very modest.
"He sees things that nobody else does. You just have to make that run.
“And we have special players on the pitch that provide special moments in a match. They can conjure up some genius.”
Wenger said: “It is too early to talk about the title but we are up there. It gives us confidence. I believe we have a very strong spirit. There is life in the team.”
Wenger then revealed that injured striker Alexis Sanchez, out with a hamstring injury, will not be back in action before January 10.
Arsenal had originally hoped to have him back for the festive programme.
City staged a late recovery when Yaya Toure threw them a lifeline with an 82nd-minute strike but could not deny Arsenal the three points.
City manager Manuel Pellegrini said: “I am uncomfortable because we played better than Arsenal.
"When we had possession we had chances, before the beautiful goal from Theo Walcott.
“We took more risks and created chances but you cannot make mistakes in these important games.
“We will continue to fight for the title.”
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