Arsenal title celebrations start before Manchester City's draw is even official

Declan Rice was already acting like a champion before Manchester City’s 1-1 draw at Bournemouth made it official. The Arsenal midfielder posted a celebration image on Instagram with Kai Havertz, William Saliba, Myles Lewis-Skelly and Bukayo Saka, and his caption was blunt: “I told you all ... it’s done.” That was a nod back to his earlier “it’s not done” clip after the loss to Manchester City last month.

Rice’s post captured the mood in Arsenal’s camp

That was the emotional centre of the night. Rice’s post did not need much embellishment because the message was already in the caption, and the timing made it land harder. Arsenal had spent enough of the race waiting for the finish line to arrive, so the first public sign of celebration came from inside the squad rather than from the table itself.

The title result followed once City were held at Bournemouth, and the standings backed it up cleanly. Arsenal finished top of the Premier League on 82 points, with Manchester City second on 77. Rice’s celebrations were premature by a few minutes, but not by much, and the sequence says a lot about how close Arsenal felt to the end.

Guardiola congratulated Arsenal, then left his own future open

Pep Guardiola’s reaction was as straightforward as Rice’s was emotional. He congratulated Arsenal, Mikel Arteta, the staff, players and fans, and said: “They deserve it.” He also added that he and the chairman would sit down after the season to make a decision on his future.

That is the part of the night that will keep getting picked over, even if the title itself is settled. Guardiola did not confirm anything about leaving, and the brief does not support turning that into a done deal. What it does show is a manager who acknowledged the result without trying to dress it up, while the noise around his next step hangs over the end of the campaign.

Bournemouth made the evening messy for City before Erling Haaland rescued a point in injury time. The opener came in the 39th minute, after Alex Scott started the move, Marcus Tavernier advanced and Adrien Truffert pulled the ball back for Eli Junior Kroupi, who curled the finish into the top corner. City were still chasing the game when Rodri hit the post and Haaland converted the rebound in the fifth minute of injury time.

Arsenal have the title, Rice has the celebration post, and Guardiola has a conversation with his chairman waiting after the season. The facts from Bournemouth leave City finished second on 77 points, and the next real question is what Guardiola says when that meeting happens.