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Those two draws were to Liverpool (away game) and Arsenal (at home). As much as the latter draw was a bit disappointing, I wouldn't take those draws as a sign of failure or dip in form. We all know that those three teams are on similar level, so those results are not surprising.
All three will have some challenging games to play and it's almost certain that all three will lose some points before the end of the season, but yeah, City needs to defeat teams like Villa (especially at home) if they want to defend their title. Odds for the City to win are estimated at 77%, so they're a strong favourite here.
Manchester City still has a chance to defend its title this season, but its chances are not as good as Liverpool and Arsenal's based on their points tally in the standings.
There are certainly some challenging games left in the season for Liverpool, Arsenal and Manchester City, but I tend to think that Liverpool will not make any more mistakes in order to maintain their position at the top of the standings until the end.
Manchester City needs to win the match against Aston Villa, of course it is mandatory after they failed to win the maximum 6 points in the last two matches against Liverpool and Arsenal. The match will not be too difficult, but it is also possible that Aston Villa can prevent Manchester City from winning their home match.