Doku’s Late Goal Secures Draw for Manchester City Against Everton

• Doku’s last-gasp equalizer salvaged a 3–3 draw for City in a thriller against Everton.

• Everton’s stunning second-half comeback nearly toppled the visitors before City’s late escape.

• This dramatic stalemate gives Arsenal the upper hand in the Premier League title race.

Jeremy Doku scored a last-gasp equalizer for Manchester City to snatch a 3-3 draw at Everton and throw the Premier League title momentum back to leader Arsenal on Monday.

The draw ended a run of three consecutive wins for City and left it five points behind the London club.

City has a game in hand, but the result at Everton’s Hill Dickinson Stadium means the title is now Arsenal’s to lose. The Gunners have three games to play.

“It’s painful now,” Doku said. “There’s a lot of games to go, everything can happen. We lost two points today, but we will keep on fighting.

“We know that one point can still be important in the end.”

City has four games left and knew it needed a win to maintain pressure on Mikel Arteta’s side. However, despite dominating possession in the first half, it struggled to create real chances. It was not until the 42nd minute that Doku found space in a crowded penalty box to curl in a delightful strike and break the deadlock.

Everton, though, emerged as a different side in the second half and struck three times in a span of 13 minutes.

City defender Marc Guéhi’s short back pass was intercepted by substitute Thierno Barry, who slipped it past an incredulous Gianluigi Donnarumma.

Five minutes later, the City defense was caught off guard again as Jake O’Brien rose at the near post to glance home a corner from James Garner.

Barry made it 3-1 in the 81st minute when a shot deflected into his path, offering him an easy finish.

Just as City fans were beginning to leave the stadium, many returned when Erling Haaland stormed forward and clipped his 25th goal of the season over Jordan Pickford.

City pushed forward relentlessly, and in the seventh minute of stoppage time, Doku curled in a sublime strike with almost the last kick of the match.

This result is a setback for Everton, which remains hopeful of securing a European place. A win would have pulled them within two points of seventh place, but instead, they sit 10th, tied on points with Fulham and Chelsea.

“We let ourselves down; we defended the second goal so poorly, and that was the main reason for the draw,” Everton coach David Moyes said.

“But at halftime we’d have taken this result because we were hugely outplayed in the first half. Getting a point against Manchester City’s not a bad result, but when you’re 3-1 up, you’re thinking you’re in with a great chance of winning.”