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MONEY may not be able to buy you love.
But it could still land Manchester City the title for the first time in more than 40 years.
Totally outplayed at the Emirates last night, they somehow clung on for a share of the points after a display of mind-boggling negativity.
They left the pitch to a chorus of boos and chants of 'Rubbish' and 'Boring, Boring City' from incensed Gooners.
How ironic then that it was George Graham's 'Boring, Boring Arsenal' who patented this type of performance.
Though, to give that team credit, they rarely played as poorly and unadventurously as City did last night and got away with it.
Arsene Wenger will, no doubt, look on it as a moral victory.
A victory, also, of right over wrong.
The Arsenal boss has long looked down his imperious nose at the way Chelsea and City have bought their way to the top.
He calls it financial doping - the ability of clubs to dominate football purely through the billions available to their owners.
That is why he turned down the offer to take over as boss of the City project when Mark Hughes was dismissed.
Philosophically, he isn't even remotely on the same wavelength as the empire builders at Eastlands.
He remains an old-fashioned purist, who thinks there is far more honour in nurturing youthful talent and building a trophy-winning team from scratch than going out and buying one.
And so it was City arrived for their biggest test of the season after splashing out £323million in 2½ years - and with another £27m shortly to be added with the signing of Wolfsburg's Bosnian striker Edin Dzeko.
That left them with a loss last year of £121m.
In the same period, Arsenal spent just £55m and yet made a staggering profit in 2009-10 of £56m.
The result? An Arsenal team last night that looked superior to City in every department.
A team playing all the beautiful football.
A team whose players were younger, quicker, smarter, infinitely more entertaining and, seemingly, with the world at their feet.
And a team, once again, who couldn't apply the knockout punch to an opponent at times hanging on the ropes.
What they would give for a £30m striker of their own to finish off all their polished approach work.
Except Wenger probably wouldn't spend the money, as it offends his senses!
At the same time, Arsenal were desperately unlucky not to take all three points and close the gap further on Manchester United.
They could have been three-up in the first 10 minutes.
Robin van Persie was inches away from converting a Jack Wilshere cross and then hit an upright before Wilshere failed to find the net from just eight yards.
City boss Roberto Mancini was going berserk on the touchline, scarcely able to believe a side that has looked so strong away from home this season could be taken apart like this.
Yes, Arsenal had beaten City 3-0 at Eastlands on October 24.
But City apologists had put much of that down to the fifth-minute dismissal of Dedryck Boyata.
There were no excuses this time, though, as Arsenal continued to tear City apart - hitting a post again after 28 minutes, when Cesc Fabregas unleashed a 20-yarder that had Joe Hart well beaten.
City were all over the place - none more so than full-backs Micah Richards and Pablo Zabaleta, who were being taken to the cleaners by the combined talents of Samir Nasri and Theo Walcott.
In the middle, Nigel De Jong and Gareth Barry were run off their feet, while Jo, on the left, was little more than a passenger.
But still Mancini persisted in playing the powerful Yaya Toure just behind Carlos Tevez.
At times, Arsenal players were lining up to have a shot and still the ball wouldn't go in the net.
How City managed to get to half-time in one piece was a question to which few had the answer.
How they got to full-time still intact was another, despite one blinding save by Hart from another ferocious drive from Van Persie.
Yet they remain in second place and heavily in title contention.
And the debate about right and wrong, good and evil continues.
But it could still land Manchester City the title for the first time in more than 40 years.
Totally outplayed at the Emirates last night, they somehow clung on for a share of the points after a display of mind-boggling negativity.
They left the pitch to a chorus of boos and chants of 'Rubbish' and 'Boring, Boring City' from incensed Gooners. How ironic then that it was George Graham's 'Boring, Boring Arsenal' who patented this type of performance.
Though, to give that team credit, they rarely played as poorly and unadventurously as City did last night and got away with it.
Arsene Wenger will, no doubt, look on it as a moral victory.
A victory, also, of right over wrong.
The Arsenal boss has long looked down his imperious nose at the way Chelsea and City have bought their way to the top.
He calls it financial doping - the ability of clubs to dominate football purely through the billions available to their owners.
That is why he turned down the offer to take over as boss of the City project when Mark Hughes was dismissed.
Philosophically, he isn't even remotely on the same wavelength as the empire builders at Eastlands.
He remains an old-fashioned purist, who thinks there is far more honour in nurturing youthful talent and building a trophy-winning team from scratch than going out and buying one.
And so it was City arrived for their biggest test of the season after splashing out £323million in 2½ years - and with another £27m shortly to be added with the signing of Wolfsburg's Bosnian striker Edin Dzeko.
That left them with a loss last year of £121m.
In the same period, Arsenal spent just £55m and yet made a staggering profit in 2009-10 of £56m.
The result? An Arsenal team last night that looked superior to City in every department.
A team playing all the beautiful football.
A team whose players were younger, quicker, smarter, infinitely more entertaining and, seemingly, with the world at their feet.
And a team, once again, who couldn't apply the knockout punch to an opponent at times hanging on the ropes.
What they would give for a £30m striker of their own to finish off all their polished approach work.
Except Wenger probably wouldn't spend the money, as it offends his senses!
At the same time, Arsenal were desperately unlucky not to take all three points and close the gap further on Manchester United.
They could have been three-up in the first 10 minutes.
Robin van Persie was inches away from converting a Jack Wilshere cross and then hit an upright before Wilshere failed to find the net from just eight yards.
City boss Roberto Mancini was going berserk on the touchline, scarcely able to believe a side that has looked so strong away from home this season could be taken apart like this.
Yes, Arsenal had beaten City 3-0 at Eastlands on October 24.
But City apologists had put much of that down to the fifth-minute dismissal of Dedryck Boyata.
There were no excuses this time, though, as Arsenal continued to tear City apart - hitting a post again after 28 minutes, when Cesc Fabregas unleashed a 20-yarder that had Joe Hart well beaten.
City were all over the place - none more so than full-backs Micah Richards and Pablo Zabaleta, who were being taken to the cleaners by the combined talents of Samir Nasri and Theo Walcott.
In the middle, Nigel De Jong and Gareth Barry were run off their feet, while Jo, on the left, was little more than a passenger.
But still Mancini persisted in playing the powerful Yaya Toure just behind Carlos Tevez.
At times, Arsenal players were lining up to have a shot and still the ball wouldn't go in the net.
How City managed to get to half-time in one piece was a question to which few had the answer.
How they got to full-time still intact was another, despite one blinding save by Hart from another ferocious drive from Van Persie.
Yet they remain in second place and heavily in title contention.
And the debate about right and wrong, good and evil continues.
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