Antoine Semenyo extended his magnificent start to life at Manchester City with another goal on Sunday, but even his latest intervention for Pep Guardiola’s side may not be enough for them to keep their flagging title bid alive.

On another day, the tables could have been turned for Sunday’s meeting, with Semenyo close to signing for City’s weekend opponents Tottenham Hotspur before eventually putting pen to paper to join the 2024 Premier League champions in the biggest African move of the January transfer window.

“I will go against my rule, hopefully only once, that there is no doubt it was clear that the club wanted to sign Semenyo,” Spurs head coach Thomas Frank acknowledged, perhaps over-effusively, in his pre-match press conference.

“They did everything, and I think that is a clear signal that the Lewis family is very committed. That’s the quality of players we are looking for to improve the squad, but the transfer window is not Football Manager, unfortunately.”

How Frank must have wished that he’d got his man in the 44th minute of Sunday’s Premier League clash in North London, particularly with the Ghanaian’s compatriot Mohammed Kudus sidelined until late March, as Semenyo added City’s second after Rayan Cherki had opened the scoring after 11 minutes against the beleaguered Lillywhites.

Hapless Tottenham appeared utterly bereft of confidence and cohesion late in the first half when Semenyo appeared to have set City on their way to victory.

He made no mistake after being played in by falling Bernado Silva from the right, with the Portugal international having received possession from Rodri as he capitalised on a wild Radu Dragusin clearance.

The Ghana international had no shortage of space as he advanced towards the six-yard box, but still kept his nerve and harnessed his technique to beat the advancing Guglielmo Vicario with a measured finish.

In scoring, he became the third player in Premier League history — behind Eric Cantona (92-93) and Benito Carbone (99-00) — to net against Tottenham for two separate clubs in the same campaign.

No one else did it in the space of 25 days, however, with the Londoners’ recent pursuit of the talented forward only adding salt to the wounds.

It was the highlight of another fine display by the 26-year-old, who has quickly adapted to life at City following his January 9 signing from Bournemouth, even if he and his new teammates lost impetus in the second half.

Marc Guéhi‘s own goal and Dominic Solanke‘s sensational scorpion kick left the Sky Blues with a point rather than the three for which they had a appeared destined.

It was the first time since April 2018 that City have led by two goals or more at half-time and failed to secure victory.

“First-half we played really well,” Semenyo told the club’s official website. “It was just keeping the ball and drawing them out. We did that really well and had a few chances on that.

“The mentality was to do the same things again,” he added. “Second-half that didn’t happen and they dominated, [I] couldn’t tell you why if I’m honest, they started picking up momentum and had a couple of chances.

“Getting the crowd into it helped. The crowd were behind them and it definitely helps.”

This was the first time Semenyo has failed to win after finding the net since arriving at City in early January, with the Black Star netting in cup victories over Exeter City and Newcastle United, as well as the 2-0 league triumph over Wolves last month.

In scoring, he equals a City record, becoming only the second player in the club’s Prem history — behind ex-Spurs striker Emmanuel Adebayor — to score in four of his first five appearances for the club after signing.

Semenyo has now had a hand in five goals in his first five outings for his new employers, with a goal and an assist against Exeter followed by the subsequent strikes against Newcastle, Wolves and now, Spurs.

He’s proving that – despite some skepticism in light of the move, not least because of the eye-watering £64 million transfer fee paid – he has the quality and the temperament to be a genuine asset for one of the league’s giants, and to up his game to the demands of an environment like City’s.

Few could argue he made the right choice in signing for City, even if some of the club’s recent acquisitions — notably the likes of Rayan Ait Nouri, Omar Marmoush, and even Abdukodir Khusanov — are yet to discover their best form since arriving in the north west.

Semenyo is demonstrating that he has the substance and the character to establish himself seamlessly at City, integrating into the club’s tactical approach and already forging the makings of an encouraging partnership with Erling Haaland.

That’s one sub-plot to watch, however, with only three players — including Haaland — averaging more shots per game than Semenyo during the course of the season so far, with the Norwegian unlikely to take too kindly to his new teammate opting to go for goal rather than play him in too often.

Semenyo even had the confidence to step up and ‘shush’ the home supporters after they reacted to him slipping during his backflipping celebration in the aftermath of scoring. He’s looking every bit like a player with the shoulders and the courage to step up to the prospect of inspiring title contenders.

However, his arrival at Eastlands is not proving to be the catalyst for a renewed title challenge that Guardiola will have surely hoped, with City’s capitulation against Spurs, coupled with Arsenal‘s victory over Leeds United, leaving them six points behind the league leaders.

While the Gunners appear to be finding their way out of a wobble — their win against Leeds ended a three-game run in the league without victory — City have been unable to capitalise, winning just one of their last six in the top flight.

“We’ve got more games, there are 14 games to go,” Semenyo added. “We are six points behind, it’s not the end. We have to keep going.

“Anything can happen. 14 games to go, they might lose a couple of games and we might win,” he added. “The dynamic changes and we have to see what happens. Everyone is visibly frustrated and we go again.”

City still must host Arsenal in Manchester on April 18, although with trips to Liverpool (on Sunday) and Chelsea to come before then, it’s imperative they find greater consistency if they’re not to move further away from Mikel Arteta’s side before the would-be title decider.

Semenyo’s strike was his 12th of the season across his time with Bournemouth and City. It’s already a record that equals Ghana’s all-time top scorers in a single Prem campaign; Tony Yeboah twice with Leeds, and André Ayew for Swansea City 10 years ago.

There’s little doubt the forward will break that record in the weeks to come, but will it be enough for City to heap enough pressure on Arsenal to get Arteta’s side to stumble?