PL MATCHDAY 26 REVIEW: Arsenal slip away as Liverpool drive forward
By Esosa Osa
We were treated to another thrilling weekend of Premier League encounters. Slip-ups, VAR controversies, red cards and late goals all featured once again.
Leicester kicked-off the weekend in unmemorable fashion for their home crowd with a 4-0 loss against visiting Brentford. The Foxes turned prey, conceding three goals in the first half to Yoane Wissa, Bryan Mbuemo, and Christian Nørgaard despite a couple of good chances falling to Veteran Jamie Vardy. The team in blue lacked the fighting spirit to set up an unlikely comeback and let in a fourth late in the game from Fabio Carvalho.
Manchester United narrowly grabbed a point in a 2-2 draw at Goodison Park after late VAR drama. Everton were the better team in the first half, taking the lead through Beto and Abdoulaye Doucoure, the latter’s goal aided by a Harry Maguire error. United exhibited more control in the second-half and were handed a lifeline after a sublime free-kick by Captain Bruno Fernandes in the 72nd minute. Eight minutes later, Manuel Ugarte bagged his first goal for the club to ignite a nervy ending.
The Toffees thought they had a penalty in stoppage time but it was rescinded after a VAR check by the referee. However, it appeared Andy Madley was only shown one angle of the incident as both teams settled for a point.
Over at the South Coast, Southampton suffered their millionth heavy defeat of the season, this time 4-0 against Brighton. Joao Pedro, Georginio Rutter, Kaoru Mitoma and Jack Hinshelwood with the goals to perish the Saints. Tottenham breathed new life with a 4-1 away victory over Ipswich as Fulham and 10-man Bournemouth both suffered defeats to Crystal Palace and Wolves respectively.
Arsenal slipped further away from leaders Liverpool, falling to a 1-0 home loss to West Ham. Hampered with injuries, centre-midfielder Mikel Merino started as a striker after his heroics against Leicester last time out. Despite the Gunners dominating possession for most of the half, West Ham took the lead against the run of play after Jarrod Bowen met Aaron Wan-Bissaka’s perfect cross in the 44th minute.
Arsenal’s dominance on the ball continued in the second-half but no chances or better still, goals to show for it. It went downhill for the Gunners after youngster, Myles Lewis-Skelly was sent off, aiding the Hammers in securing all three points.
Chelsea’s poor run of form continued on Saturday night at Villa Park. It was a dream start for the Londoners after Enzo Fernandez tapped home from close range. The match gradually became end-to-end with Villa conjuring the better chances before the half-time whistle. Marcus Rashford was brought at the break and that proved pivotal for Villa.
In the 57th minute, the Manchester United loanee assisted Marcos Asensio for his first goal for the club. The home side were more dogged in their search for a winner and got rewarded late on after Rashford assisted Asensio again. The Blues have just two wins in their last nine league games.
Newcastle and Nottingham Forest handed fans a Premier League classic which went the way of the hosts, winning 4-3. Callum Hudson-Odoi pounced on Jacob Murphy’s mistake for his opener just six minutes in. But the home side responded in spectacular fashion scoring four goals in 11 minutes, between the 23rd and 34th minute. Lewis Miley, Jacob Murphy and Alexander Isak’s brace gave the Magpies plenty of breathing space before the break.
Forest looked by far the hungrier side in the second-half and received a boost after Nikola Milenkovic’s back heel made it 4-2. They continued to search for another but found their third too late in the game after Ryan Yates expertly placed his effort past Nick Pope on the 90th-minute mark. Newcastle held on to claim a much-needed win in their quest for Champions League football.
In the Weekend’s main event, Liverpool travelled to Manchester to face-off with struggling champions, City in their bid to extend the gap at the top. City started brightly creating half-chances and Jeremy Doku constantly toying with Trent Alexander-Arnold. But it was Liverpool who took the lead after a superb corner-kick routine was dispatched by Mohamed Salah.
Salah turned provider for Dominik Szoboszlai in the 37th minute which made him the first player in Premier League history to score and assist in both games against the reigning champions in a season. Liverpool thought they were 3-nil up in the second-half but Curtis Jones goal was ruled out for offside in the build-up. The scores remained the same at the final whistle, as Liverpool extended their lead at the top to 11 points.
