It was another busy weekend in the Premier League, with six of the top eight going head to head.
However, it was less of a shock that Liverpool was able to extend their unbeaten record as they beat the in-form Southampton at Anfield to make it 42 games without defeat.
Liverpool 4 X 0 Southampton
The stats that Liverpool are averaging at present is nothing short of mesmerizing. They have won 100 points from a possible 102, and also equaled the most consecutive wins in the top division. However, the scoreline on Saturday was somewhat harsh on the visiting Saints.
Southampton performed brilliantly in the game and should have had a penalty moments before Liverpool took the lead when Danny Ings was brought down by Fabinho.
The referee chose not to use VAR, and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain fired the Reds ahead.
Jordan Henderson was pinpointed by many as a standout figure to win player of the season, and he showcased his abilities by scoring the second. The game was put out of reach in the final 20 minutes as Mohamed Salah scored a brace.
Their lead at the top of the Premier League table is 22 points, which means they only need to win their next six to be crowned champions.
Tottenham Hotspur 2 X 0 Manchester City
The gap at the top was extended after Manchester City were made to rue their missed chances as Jose Mourinho got one over on his arch-rival Pep Guardiola. City missed a glorious chance to take the lead when Ilkay Gundogen missed from the spot in the first half.
The penalty was awarded after a two-minute delay as Mike Dean allowed play to continue until the ball was dead. Raheem Sterling had thought he won another penalty following the missed one, but Dean thought that the Englishman went down too easily.
City’s game plan changed when Oleksandr Zinchenko was sent off following two tactical fouls. Within three minutes Spurs were ahead. Steven Bergwijn marked his first start for his new club with a perfect finish from the edge of the box.
Tottenham made it two less than ten minutes later when Heung-Min Son beat Ederson at his near post. A deflected Bernardo Silva cross smashed the Spurs cross-bar in injury time, which perfectly summed up the Citizens’ ability in front of goal on the day.
West Ham 3 X 3 Brighton & Hove Albion
Saturday’s action was all about the teams looking to stay in the division. West Ham missed a glorious chance to get themselves out of the relegation places as the spurred a two-goal lead.
Issa Diop put the Hammers ahead before Robert Snodgrass doubled the lead. Angelo Ogbonna’s own goal put Brighton back in contention before Snodgrass scored again.
The game was full of defensive mishaps from the Hammers, and Pascal Gross took advantage of a misunderstanding between the West Ham defenders to cut the deficit to one.
Glenn Murray scored the equalizer with ten minutes remaining to ensure Brighton can keep some daylight between themselves and the bottom three.
Watford 2 X 3 Everton
Everton produced their first comeback from a losing position for 776 days as they beat Watford on Saturday.
The Hornets jumped into a two-goal lead after goals from Adam Masina and Roberto Pereyra. However, the Toffees were level before the break as they scored twice in injury time through Yerry Mina.
Watford was expected to push on and get the winner after Fabian Delph was sent off with 20 minutes remaining, however, it was the Toffees that got the winner through Theo Walcott.
Bournemouth 2 X 1 Aston Villa
It was a must-win game for Bournemouth on Saturday, and win they did. The Cherries scored twice in the opening half through Phillip Billing and Nathan Ake, before Jefferson Lerma was sent off six minutes into the second half.
Mbwana Samatta scored his first goal for the Villa with 20 minutes remaining, but the Cherries were able to hold on for the win to lift them out of the bottom three.
Leicester City 2 X 2 Chelsea
Leicester and Chelsea played out an entertaining 2-2 draw to open the weekend’s action. Kepa Arizabolga was dropped from the Blues starting eleven.
Antonio Rudiger scored the opener early in the second half before goals from Harvey Barnes and Ben Chilwell turned the game on its head in the space of ten minutes.
However, the Blues were able to rescue a point as Rudiger scored his second of the game with 20 minutes remaining. Blues stay in fourth, while Leicester still have an eight-point lead over Frank Lampard’s side.
Crystal Palace 0 X 1 Sheffield United
Sheffield United are emerging as a shock contender for a European place as they maintained their excellent away record at Selhurst Park.
The only goal of the game was a shocker from a Palace point of view, as Oliver Norwood’s corner was carried over his own line by Vicente Guatia. The Blades moved up to fifth with the win, before Spurs’ victory knocked them back down to sixth.
Manchester United 0 X 0 Wolverhampton Wanderers
All eyes were on Bruno Fernandes for Manchester United as he made his debut for the Red Devils following his move from Sporting Lisbon. The Portuguese midfielder had the most touches for United but was unable to break the deadlock.
United remain in sixth, while Wolves have the same number of points in seventh. Both sides are six points behind Chelsea in fourth.
Newcastle United 0 X 0 Norwich City
It was another goalless draw at St James’ Park, as the Canaries were unable to take their chances to improve their survival chances.
Teemu Pukki missed the best chance of the game. The draw means that Norwich remains seven points from safety, while Newcastle is sitting seven points above the relegation places.
Burnley 0 x 0 Arsenal
Arsenal ended the transfer window with some good news. The arrival of Cedric Soares from Southampton and the signing of center back Pablo Marí seemed to help to fix the defensive issues.
However, in the match against Burnley, it was actually the attacking force that was not on their best days. A pale exhibition by Aubameyang and Lacazette, as the protagonists were Nick Pope and Bernd Leno.
Both goalkeepers were on an inspiring afternoon and the outcome was another 0x0 result.
The Gunners are on their 4th consecutive draw and continue on the 10th. Burnley comes just after at 11th.
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