If Arsenal were struggling to afford Shaun Wright-Phillips before he dealt their title bid a major blow, they would surely be unable to prise him away from Manchester City now.

But while the England winger's potential transfer value continues to soar with each superb display, it was the damage to Arsenal's championship chances which proved even more costly.

Only an inspirational overhead kick by Thierry Henry which set up Freddie Ljungberg for a late equaliser prevented Wright-Phillips' 30-yard drive from handing City their first Highbury win since 1975.

However, in truth, the damage was already done. For with Chelsea again winning, Arsenal's failure to keep pace with the leaders meant that the gap at the top has widened to a worrying seven points.

Only in a frantic late surge, with Robin van Persie striking the bar, did an inexperienced Arsenal side even threaten to pull off an unlikely comeback.

For not only was Wright-Phillips superb throughout, being watched by his stepfather, the Arsenal scoring legend Ian Wright, but so too were many of his team-mates.

Joey Barton may have let himself down at his club's Christmas party, but he never stopped battling in midfield.

And the central defensive duo of Richard Dunne and Sylvain Distin were simply inspired as they held Arsenal at bay for so long.

Moreover, City were without leading scorer Nicolas Anelka, who was said to have a back injury, even if his absence did not induce Kevin Keegan into a safety-first policy.

Many other sides may have arrived at Highbury with a five-man midfield, but that is an alien concept to the City boss, who paired Jon Macken with Robbie Fowler.

Indeed, with just 35 seconds gone, Fowler's powerful header was acrobatically saved by Manuel Almunia at full-stretch and that set the tone for the first half.

Arsenal, who were forced to field an inexperienced line-up, threatened on the break, with 20-year-old Justin Hoyte shooting straight at David James on a rare forward surge.

However, City were otherwise working tirelessly to close Arsenal down in midfield, giving the home side little time to settle on the ball and few openings for Henry.

The Gunners were struggling to find their normal rhythm, even if there was still little warning of what was to come when Patrick Vieira was harried off the ball by Barton some 30 yards out.

The ball fell to Wright-Phillips and the exciting winger instantly let fly with an exquisite drive which flew into the top corner, giving Almunia no time in which to react.

If it was not for Sven-Goran Eriksson's unwavering faith in David Beckham, it would surely not be long before Wright-Phillips displaced the England captain from the national team.

However, Wright-Phillips was not finished there and promptly set Fowler through minutes later only for Hoyte to save the day with a last-ditch tackle.

Arsenal finally responded, with Vieira rising to meet Robert Pires' corner, but the ball flashed inches past the post as the Frenchman held his head in his hands.

Almost inevitably, Arsenal increased their pressure after the restart, with Distin deflecting Cole's low cross just past his own upright.

Cole's own header was also well saved by James, although Arsenal were struggling to make any real impression on City's superb central defensive partnership.

City's own attacking threats were reduced, with Macken failing to keep his shot on target at full-stretch after a mis-hit clearance by Almunia.

But Wenger needed to make a change, introducing Jermaine Pennant for Fabregas with 25 minutes left and moving Pires into central midfield as Ljungberg switched flanks.

Arsenal duly came again, with Pires producing a dipping half-volley, which James tipped over the bar.

With 15 minutes left, they were finally level, with Henry catching the entire City defence unawares with his moment of magic.

Ben Thatcher looked to be playing Ljungberg onside as Henry's overhead kick cross reached the Swede and his header beat James from eight yards out.

However, the winner agonisingly eluded them as van Persie rifled a free-kick against the crossbar soon afterwards, with Ljungberg unable to control the rebound.

Arsenal huffed and puffed in the final stages, but victory eluded them. City took the credit at Highbury but the real spoils of the night were being enjoyed across London at Stamford Bridge.

Teams:

Arsenal Almunia, Hoyte, Toure, Senderos, Cole, Ljungberg, Fabregas (Pennant 65), Vieira, Pires, Henry, Van Persie.

Subs Not Used: Lehmann, Clichy, Larsson, Owusu-Abeyie.

Booked: Toure, Fabregas, Senderos.

Goals: Ljungberg 75.

Man City James, Onuoha, Distin, Dunne, Thatcher, Shaun Wright-Phillips, Barton (Flood 77), Bosvelt, Sibierski, Macken (Bradley Wright-Phillips 90), Fowler.

Subs Not Used: Sommeil, McManaman, Waterreus.

Booked: Thatcher, Barton, Bosvelt.

Goals: Shaun Wright-Phillips 31.

Att: 38,086

Ref: R Styles (Hampshire).