LONDON, Nov 8 — Manchester City suffered a third consecutive Premier League defeat at the hands of Nottingham Forest on Saturday, allowing Arsenal to stretch their lead at the top of the table to six points.

Enzo Maresca’s men desperately needed a victory at the City Ground to keep pace with the in-form champions, who have taken 27 points from a possible 30, but lost 3-1.

City had a mountain to climb after finding themselves 2-0 down in the 18th minute following goals from defender Jair Cunha and forward Liam Delap.

The visitors were much improved after the break and Rayan Cherki cut the deficit with an emphatic strike into the roof of the net.