Tag: English Premier League

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EDDIE NKETIAH LATE STRIKE RESCUES POINT FOR GUNNERS AGAINST FULHAM

Arsenal striker Eddie Nketiah came off the bench to score a last-gasp equaliser against Fulham – whose Premier League survival bid suffered another late blow as a result.

Scott Parker’s side lost to a last-minute goal to Wolves last time out but appeared on course for a first-ever away win over Arsenal following Josh Maja’s second-half penalty.

Instead, it was further heartbreak as Nketiah scrambled in from point-blank range to earn the misfiring Gunners a 1-1 draw.

Mikel Arteta made five changes from Arsenal side which cruised into the semi-finals of the Europa League with a 4-0 win at Slavia Prague on Thursday but they never looked like hitting those heights here.

But there would be VAR controversy throughout, Dani Ceballos seeing a header ruled out after Bukayo Saka had been centimetres offside in the build-up.

Then Fulham would get their penalty as referee Craig Pawson pointed to the spot on the advice of his assistant, with VAR checking Gabriel Magalhaes’ foul on Mario Lemina and then a potential offside against Ola Aina in the move leading to the spot-kick.

With both decisions standing, it was left to Maja to hammer the ball home from 12 yards and give Fulham renewed optimism of avoiding the drop.

Nketiah’s eventual leveller would stand after an offside check against Rob Holding in the build-up, with Parker exasperated on the touchline once again.

The hosts had started well, Alexandre Lacazette playing in Gabriel Martinelli with the recalled striker chipping his effort just wide.

He then forced a low save out of Alphonse Areloa after Emile Smith Rowe had forced a low ball across goal.

Fulham offered nothing going forward until the 20-minute mark when a deflected Maja shot wrong-footed home debutant Mat Ryan in the Arsenal goal and trickled inches wide of the post.

Arsenal had started well but were soon toiling to break down a stubborn Fulham defence.

The hosts thought they had finally broken through when Ceballos headed in a Hector Bellerin cross – only for VAR to spot Saka’s straying boot.

The assistant referee’s flag would soon deny Arsenal another goal, this time with a more-obvious decision against Smith Rowe, who mistimed his run as he latched onto a Lacazette pass.

Lacazette pulled a shot wide right at the start of the second half but Arsenal would again struggle to create chances.

That would come back to haunt them as Fulham were awarded a penalty, with referee Pawson pointing to the spot after guidance from his assistant.

Two VAR checks later and Maja broke the deadlock, giving Ryan no chance from the spot.

Arteta turned to Nicolas Pepe and Thomas Partey, the former coming close to levelling with his first meaningful touch as his header across goal was hacked clear.

Lacazette was then replaced by Nketiah, the France striker heading straight down the tunnel with his shirt over his head.

It would be Nketiah who provided the late heroics as Arsenal threw everything they could to earn a share of the spoils.

Ryan was thrown into the Fulham box for back-to-back late corners and got a telling glance to the second as the ball broke to Ceballos, whose shot was fumbled away by Areola but into the path of the waiting Nketiah.

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UEFA AND PREMIER LEAGUE THREATEN TO BAN BREAKAWAY CLUBS FROM ALL COMPETITIONS

European soccer’s governing body UEFA has warned clubs linked to a breakaway Super League that they face being banned from domestic and international competitions if they set up a rival to the Champions League.

In a joint statement with English, Spanish and Italian leagues and federations, UEFA said it will consider “all measures”, including the courts and bans from domestic leagues, in opposition to plans for a breakaway competition.

UEFA said it had learnt that clubs from those countries “may be planning to announce their creation of a closed, so-called Super League.”

“If this were to happen, we wish to reiterate that we… (and) also FIFA and all our member associations — will remain united in our efforts to stop this cynical project, a project that is founded on the self-interest of a few clubs at a time when society needs solidarity more than ever,” UEFA said.

“We will consider all measures available to us, at all levels, both judicial and sporting in order to prevent this happening. Football is based on open competitions and sporting merit; it cannot be any other way,” the statement added.

In January, FIFA said that a breakaway league would not be recognised and that “any club or player involved in such a competition would as a consequence not be allowed to participate in any competition organised by FIFA or their respective confederation” — meaning players would be banned from the World Cup.

Sunday’s UEFA statement said: “The clubs concerned will be banned from playing in any other competition at domestic, European or world level, and their players could be denied the opportunity to represent their national teams.

“We thank those clubs in other countries, especially the French and German clubs, who have refused to sign up to this. We call on all lovers of football, supporters and politicians, to join us in fighting against such a project if it were to be announced. This persistent self-interest of a few has been going on for too long. Enough is enough.”

In a separate statement on Sunday, the Premier League said it “condemns any proposal that attacks the principles of open competition and sporting merit” following reports that six of its clubs were supporting a European Super League.

Manchester United, Liverpool, Arsenal, Chelsea, Tottenham and Manchester City have signed up to the breakaway plan, according to reports.

“The Premier League condemns any proposal that attacks the principles of open competition and sporting merit which are at the heart of the domestic and European football pyramid,” the league said in a statement.

The developments occurred on the eve of a new-look 36-team Champions League being discussed by UEFA on Monday.

“Fans of any club in England and across Europe can currently dream that their team may climb to the top and play against the best,” the statement continued.

“We believe that the concept of a European Super League would destroy this dream.”

The statement added: “The Premier League is proud to run a competitive and compelling football competition that has made it the most widely watched league in the world.

“Our success has enabled us to make an unrivalled financial contribution to the domestic football pyramid.

“A European Super League will undermine the appeal of the whole game, and have a deeply damaging impact on the immediate and future prospects of the Premier League and its member clubs, and all those in football who rely on our funding and solidarity to prosper.

“We will work with fans, The FA, EFL, PFA and LMA, as well as other stakeholders, at home and abroad, to defend the integrity and future prospects of English football in the best interests of the game.”

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HARRY KANE SCORES BRACE, LIMPS OFF INJURED IN EVERTON DRAW

Harry Kane showcased exactly why Tottenham are so desperate to keep him as he scored twice in a 2-2 draw at Everton, but an apparent ankle knock sustained in stoppage time will give Spurs serious cause for concern.

Tottenham insist their star man is not for sale at any price despite constant speculation surrounding his future, and it is easy to see why after he scored two clinical goals at Goodison Park.

He opened the scoring in the 27th minute after a defensive error and then, following a Gylfi Sigurdsson double either side of half-time put Everton in front, the England captain earned a point 20 minutes from time.

In doing so he moved two goals in front of Mohamed Salah at the top of the Premier League goalscoring charts, taking his tally to 21 for the season before limping off injured late on.

As he has done so often, he again carried Spurs on what was an overall disappointing showing and their top-four hopes suffered a possible terminal blow, sitting five points behind West Ham having played a game more, as the pressure increases on a forlorn Jose Mourinho.

Everton are a point behind, so this result does not help them much and they will rue squandering the lead and then missing key chances in the second half.

It appeared February’s nine-goal FA Cup thriller had used up all the fun for this fixture as it was a drab opening 25 minutes, where Richarlison’s shot which Hugo Lloris comfortably saved was the only moment that passed as entertainment.

But the game burst into life with two goals in four minutes.

Spurs took the lead with their first foray into Everton’s box as Kane was clinical. Mason Holgate missed Tanguy Ndombele’s cross and Kane controlled and fired into the bottom corner.

Mourinho’s men let another advantage slip thanks to a quickfire response from the hosts.

Sergio Reguilon clattered into the back of James Rodriguez, with Michael Oliver immediately pointing to the spot even though replays suggested Rodriguez kicked the floor and contact was minimal.

Sigurdsson made no mistake from the spot, sending Lloris the wrong way.

Everton gained momentum from their leveller and should have gone in front before half-time.

A brilliant move saw Richarlison play in Rodriguez, but the Colombian’s snapshot was brilliantly saved by Lloris, who also kept out a Richarlison header before the break.

It did not take much for Spurs to improve after half-time and they fashioned good chances in the opening 15 minutes of the second half.

First, Son Heung-min ghosted into the area and shot straight at Jordan Pickford when Kane was begging for a pull-back and, after more great work by Kane to open up play, Ndombele’s effort was deflected over the crossbar.

From the resulting corner, Toby Alderweireld came closest to regaining Spurs’ lead, but his header hit the near post.

But it was Everton who moved in front just after the hour mark with a fine goal.

They again cut Spurs open, working the ball out to Seamus Coleman, who pulled back to Sigurdsson to fire home a brilliant first-time finish into the far corner.

However, they were masters of their own downfall as they allowed Spurs to hit back just six minutes later.

Michael Keane and Holgate collided with each other when trying to clear a cross and the ball fell to the one man they did not want it to and Kane made them pay, lashing home in style from 10 yards out.

Kane almost scored a hat-trick minutes later but his header from Lucas Moura’s cross clipped the outside of the post.

It was Everton who were left with their heads in their hands at the end as they squandered a great chance to win it when Lloris denied Josh King and then Richarlison blazed over an open goal from the rebound.

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PAUL POGBA CRITICISES FORMER MANAGER JOSE MOURINHO IN CANDID INTERVIEW

Paul Pogba has attacked Jose Mourinho’s man-management style, accusing him of “going against players” and making them feel like “they don’t exist any more”.

Mourinho made Pogba the world’s most expensive player following his 2016 appointment as Manchester United manager.

Pogba was instrumental as United claimed a League Cup and Europa League double in 2017, but the pair had an uneasy relationship before Mourinho was sacked in December 2018 and succeeded by Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

Mourinho’s relationship with some of his players had deteriorated following that first campaign and there were reports of a training ground spat with Pogba after the France midfielder player was stripped of the United vice-captaincy in September 2018.

“What I have now with Ole is different because he wouldn’t go against the players,” Pogba said in a Sky Sports interview.

“It’s not like you put them on the side and they don’t exist any more. I think that’s the difference between Mourinho and Ole.

“Once I had a great relationship with Mourinho. Everybody sees that and the next day you don’t know what happened.

“That’s the strange thing I had with Mourinho. And I can not explain to you because, even me, I don’t know.”

Pogba’s comments came after United piled the pressure on Mourinho with a 3-1 win at Tottenham last Sunday.

Solskjaer and Mourinho clashed in a heated exchange of words after the United boss was was unhappy when Son Heung-min went down in the build-up to Edinson Cavani’s controversial disallowed opener.

Mourinho said he was left “very disappointed” by Solskjaer’s claims that he would not feed his son if he had behaved like Son, but Pogba accused the Portuguese of using deflection tactics to take the focus away from Tottenham’s performance.

Pogba said: “I am sure Mourinho said something that made people speak. That’s what he does.

“We got the result that we wanted. Ole knows it and we enjoyed that moment.

“We know Mourinho and what he likes. We don’t need this.

“We just focus on us, we won the game, he lost the game, and he doesn’t want to speak about the game.

“He wants to speak about the dad of someone, that’s what he does. Everybody knows it. It’s very Mourinho.”

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LACAZETTE STARS AS ARSENAL THRASH SHEFFIELD UTD

Alexandre Lacazette’s brace either side of a Gabriel Martinelli strike gave Arsenal a 3-0 victory over Sheffield United which lifts the Gunners into the top half of the Premier League table.

Arsenal had the better of the first-half chances, Martinelli finding the side-netting and later forcing goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale into a smart save.

And they took the lead when Bukayo Saka and Dani Ceballos exchanged passes before the latter produced an exquisite flick for Lacazette to round off a fine team move on 33 minutes.

Ramsdale then parried Nicolas Pepe’s shot into Martinelli’s path for a tap-in before Lacazette completed the scoring late on when played through on goal.

Arsenal’s first away Premier League victory over the Blades puts them on 45 points, above Leeds United and into ninth, with seven matches remaining.

Sheff Utd remain bottom with 14 points.

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JESSE LINGARD BRACE DOWN LEICESTER CITY DESPITE IHEANACHO’S LATE STRIKES

Jesse Lingard continued his fine form with two goals as West Ham United returned to the top four with a 3-2 win over Leicester City at London Stadium.

West Ham went ahead on 29 minutes with a fantastic first-time finish from Lingard, who swept in Vladimir Coufal’s cross on the half-volley from the edge of the penalty area.

Lingard scored again on 44 minutes, tapping into an empty net after Jarrod Bowen beat Kasper Schmeichel to the ball.

Bowen added the Hammers’ third when he turned in Tomas Soucek’s pass three minutes into the second half.

Kelechi Iheanacho set up a tense finale with two goals in the final 20 minutes.

First the Nigerian finished on the turn after being set up by Ricardo Pereira before he fired in from close range in stoppage time.

West Ham held on to return to fourth place on 55 points, a point and a position behind Leicester.

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SAINT MAXIMIN INSPIRES NEWCASTLE 2-1 VITORY AT BURNLEY

Substitute Allan Saint-Maximin scored one goal and created another as Newcastle United moved six points clear of the bottom three with a turnaround win at Burnley.

Matej Vydra had put Burnley ahead on 18 minutes, converting Chris Wood’s cutback for his third goal in five matches.

Newcastle goalkeeper Martin Dubravka made three great saves before the match turned with the introductions of Saint-Maximin and Callum Wilson just before the hour-mark.

Less than two minutes after coming on, Saint-Maximin set up Jacob Murphy to slam a shot past Bailey Peacock-Farrell, who was deputising for the injured Nick Pope.

Five minutes later Saint-Maximin completed the turnaround, running from his own half, tricking past James Tarkowski and scoring from just inside the box.

Newcastle are on 32 points, behind 16th-placed Brighton & Hove Albion on goal difference, and only one point behind Burnley in 15th.

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SON HEUNG-MIN RACIALLY ABUSED AFTER TOTTENHAM’S DEFEAT TO MANCHESTER UNITED

Tottenham have condemned “abhorrent” racist abuse directed at Son Heung-min on social media following Sunday’s 3-1 home loss to Manchester United.

The South Korea forward was involved in an incident which saw an Edinson Cavani goal controversially ruled out in the first half for the visitors, with Scott McTominay adjudged to have fouled Son in the build-up.

Son was targeted with racist insults both in replies to a tweet from Spurs’ official account and in the comments section on his most recent Instagram post.

“Another matchday and more abhorrent racial abuse suffered by one of our players,” a statement from the north London club read.

“This has again been reported to the platforms and we shall now undertake a full review alongside the Premier League to determine the most effective action moving forward.

“We stand with you, Sonny.”

The PA news agency has contacted Twitter and Instagram for a response.

Son became the latest victim in a seemingly endless string of online racist abuse, with Raheem Sterling having received hateful messages in the wake of Manchester City’s 2-1 loss to Leeds on Saturday.

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WE DESERVED CITY VICTORY – MARCELO BIELSA

Marcelo Bielsa felt his 10-man Leeds side deserved their victory over Manchester City on Saturday – but would not have complained had they lost.

Stuart Dallas struck twice, including an injury-time winner, as Leeds overcame the first-half sending-off of captain Liam Cooper to win 2-1 against the Premier League leaders at the Etihad Stadium.

City racked up 29 shots in a dominant display but, after equalising through Ferran Torres on 76 minutes, could not make their superiority count and were punished by Dallas late on.

Leeds manager Bielsa said: “They dominated the game, the majority of the chances at goal were in their favour.

“But the result was deserved because of the character, personality, effort and fortitude from a mental and physical point of view.

“It is a little bit strange to say it – as it would have been fair for City to win – but we deserved to win.”

It was Leeds’ first victory over one of the established ‘big six’ clubs since their promotion back to the top flight.

It was also a notable first win for veteran Bielsa over City boss Pep Guardiola, but the 65-year-old Argentinian refused to take any of the credit.

He said: “That Leeds beat Man City doesn’t mean I imposed myself over their manager.

“Guardiola is the manager of the team Leeds beat but I don’t consider anything on my part.

“I do think value belongs to the players for winning a difficult game.”

The dismissal of Cooper in the last minute of the first half for a bad challenge on Gabriel Jesus changed the nature of the game, forcing Leeds into second-half rearguard.

Referee Andre Marriner initially showed a yellow card before revising his opinion after checking on the pitchside monitor.

Bielsa did not give a view on the incident.

He said: “I consider the English refereeing positive and valuable, and VAR is a resource that ends the doubts over a decision.

“My opinion is not important because the referees are specialists and the tool of VAR helps them make the decision.”

Guardiola, whose quadruple-chasing side face Borussia Dortmund in the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final next Wednesday, made seven changes.

He denied selection was a major factor in the result.

He said: “When you win you are a genius, when you lose you have to take it.

“I don’t have any regret about about the XI for selection because I trust a lot of them. If I didn’t trust them they would not play.

“Everyone was good but it is difficult against Leeds because they are used to winning duels. You cannot let them run. You have to control it and we did not.”

The defeat was only City’s second in 29 games in all competitions, 27 of which have been won. They still need 11 points to wrap up their third title in the space of four years.

Guardiola said: “When you lose a game you realise how difficult it is, what we have done so far.

“The Premier League must still be won. We need points still as our opponent can win all the games.

“Now we need to do it again. We have Aston Villa and then three of the next four games are like finals, in the Champions League, FA Cup, Carabao Cup.

“We have incredible confidence in the guys and defeat is sometimes is necessary to understand how difficult it is.”

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KAI HAVERTZ STARS, PULISIC HITS BRACE AS CHELSEA THRASH PALACE TO MAINTAIN TOP FOUR HOPES

Kai Havertz starred to help Chelsea get their top-four hopes back on track with a comfortable 4-1 win at Crystal Palace.

The Germany international ended his long drought in the Premier League with an early strike at Selhurst Park and caused the hosts constant problems in easily one of his best displays for the club.

Christian Pulisic also impressed and grabbed a brace while Kurt Zouma was on target in the first half for Thomas Tuchel’s men, who moved up to fourth with this routine victory in south London.

Play got under way at Selhurst Park after a two-minute period of silence following the death of the Duke of Edinburgh, Prince Philip on Friday.

Once the action started it was the number two at this Palace who took centre stage, with the booming voice of Roy Hodgson’s assistant Ray Lewington heard prominently during the first five minutes.

It had been a regular feature of football behind closed doors, but an anomaly happened with eight minutes played when Havertz grabbed only his second Premier League goal since a £71million summer switch.

Vicente Guaita made a fine save to deny Christian Pulisic moments earlier before Eberechi Eze was dispossessed deep inside his own half and it proved costly.

Havertz won the ball back and was found by Callum Hudson-Odoi in the penalty area where he produced a fine curled left-footed strike from eight yards to open the scoring.

The composure for the finish had been lacking by the German in previous appearances, with this his second goal from his last 28 club outings after an initial bright start to life at Stamford Bridge.

Former Bayer Leverkusen attacker Havertz was not finished there and within 120 seconds, he had assisted Pulisic to make it 2-0 with a cutback as the winger smashed into the roof of the net from close range.

Both had struggled for goals this term, but it was the American’s second in as many starts while Tuchel saw his players again respond to last weekend’s shock loss to West Brom having beat Porto in midweek.

Havertz almost had a goal of the season contender in the 22nd minute but his volley after a wonderful flick over Patrick Van Aanholt was saved.

It was 3-0 with 30 minutes played, though, when Kurt Zouma headed home a Mason Mount free-kick to ensure Chelsea would finish the night in the top four.

Antonio Rudiger nearly joined his fellow centre-back on the scoresheet prior to half-time, but Van Aanholt cleared his goalbound effort to ensure the damage for the hosts was limited to three at the break.

Ben Chilwell was the next Blues defender to be presented with an opportunity and Tuchel’s high standards were on display when the German threw his hands up in the air following the missed effort by the full-back early into the second period.

With Porto up next on Tuesday, the Chelsea manager was able to withdraw Jorginho after an hour but Palace added some tension to the occasion by pulling a goal back in the 63rd minute.

Jeffrey Schlupp made an immediate impact from the bench and crossed in for Benteke to grab his sixth goal of the campaign with a smart header in what was the Eagles’ first effort of the match.

Normal service was quickly resumed when Gary Cahill made a last-ditch block against his old club to deny Mount, but a fourth goal arrived with 78 minutes played.

Substitute Reece James was afforded too much space on the right by a weary home defence and Pulisic finished off his delivery at the back post to wrap up the scoring.