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ALISSON, LIVERPOOL MISERY CONTINUES AS LIVERPOOL LOSE AT LEICESTER.

Alisson suffered another nightmare as Liverpool’s title defence was left hanging by a thread after a late collapse at Leicester.

The goalkeeper gifted Jamie Vardy a game-changing goal as the Foxes scored three times inside a dramatic final 14 minutes to clinch a 3-1 win.

Alisson, fresh from two huge gaffes against Manchester City, aided Liverpool’s late capitulation when he came and missed Youri Tielemans’ long pass and Vardy ran the ball in.

James Maddison had already levelled before Harvey Barnes struck to compound the visitors’ misery.

Mo Salah had given them a second-half lead but Jurgen Klopp’s side are 10 points behind leaders Manchester City – having played two games more – after a third straight defeat.

Vardy also missed two excellent chances when he headed at Alisson and hit the bar in the first half.

It was a stunning turnaround and the Foxes moved into second, six points ahead of Liverpool.

Klopp would have never envisaged such a collapse after a bright start, despite Maddison trying to lob Alisson from inside his own half.

Jordan Henderson’s raking 50-yard pass sent Salah clear of Ricardo Pereira yet the forward failed to get the ball under control as he burst into the area

Vardy lifted the ball over from an angle after Barnes picked him out and Liverpool’s injury worries continued when James Milner was forced off after just 17 minutes, Thiago replacing him.

It failed to dent the visitors’ momentum, though, and they continued to probe with Salah giving Pereira a difficult half.

The Egypt international skipped away and his cross was turned wide by Sadio Mane before Kasper Schmeichel produced a world-class save to deny Roberto Firmino’s header – although Henderson was flagged offside in the build up.

Leicester’s sloppiness with the ball aided their top-four rivals but they should have opened the scoring nine minutes before the break.

Barnes picked out Vardy in the area but, unmarked seven yards out, he headed straight at Alisson.

It was a chance the former England striker would usually take and he missed another golden one soon after.

Debutant Ozan Kabak’s slip allowed Maddison’s impudent flick to send the striker clear but his rising drive hit the bar.

For all their possession, Liverpool could have gone into the break two goals down but started the second half as they did the first, pinning the Foxes back.

Klopp’s side struggled to create clear openings but did come close after 57 minutes.

Pereira brought down Salah and Trent Alexander-Arnold’s 30-yard free kick clipped Vardy in the wall and bounced off the bar.

Leicester’s resolve looked like holding firm, with the returning Wilfred Ndidi quietly efficient, but Liverpool finally broke through after 67 minutes.

Alexander-Arnold found Firmino in the area and his cute turn teed up Salah to curl into the corner from 15 yards.

Liverpool looked on course for victory but collapsed in a frantic final 14 minutes.

First Leicester thought they had a penalty after Thiago brought down Barnes, only for VAR to rule the foul came outside the box.

It mattered little though as Maddison’s low free kick flashed straight in – although it was only given after a VAR check with Daniel Amartey ruled fractionally onside.

Three minutes later Alisson rushed out to Tielemans’ pass but clattered into Kabak instead to leave Vardy with a simple finish.

It got worse for the visitors with five minutes left when Barnes broke free on the left and fired past Alisson.

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BURNLEY CRUISE TO VICTORY AT CRYSTAL PALACE

Burnley returned to winning ways in style after a quick start proved key to a 3-0 win away at Crystal Palace.

Johann Berg Gudmundsson and Jay Rodriguez netted inside 10 minutes at Selhurst Park and Matt Lowton added a brilliant third after the break to end a four-match run without a victory for Sean Dyche’s team.

It moved the Clarets to 26 points and 11 clear of the relegation zone but the Eagles’ woes without talisman Wilfried Zaha continued. In his absence, Palace have lost 18 of their last 20 top-flight games and the latest spoiled Roy Hodgson’s 350th Premier League game in management.

Without their top goalscorer due to a hamstring injury, Christian Benteke and Michy Batshuayi started together up front for only the second time this season but for a third consecutive game the hosts conceded early.

It was largely down to their own doing too with Scott Dann and Patrick Van Aanholt failing to clear Erik Pieters’ cross from deep and Gudmundsson teed himself up before he fired into the corner after five minutes.

The Iceland midfielder ended a lengthy goal drought in last weekend’s 1-1 draw at home to Brighton and this latest effort made it two in two league games for the ex-Charlton player.

Burnley should have doubled their advantage four minutes later when Ashley Barnes’ shot was deflected behind for a corner by Dann but they did not have to wait long for a second.

From the resulting set-piece, Dwight McNeil’s inswinging delivery was not dealt with by home goalkeeper Vicente Guaita and Rodriguez had the easy task of heading home from inside the six-yard area.

It was more poor defending by the Eagles, but Rodriguez did not complain after bringing his 20-match wait for a top-flight goal to its conclusion.

A couple of efforts from Benteke signalled the hosts’ eagerness to get back into the contest yet both were comfortable for Nick Pope.

In Zaha’s absence, the onus was on Ebere Eze to create for Palace and he curled wide following good work by Jordan Ayew from the opposite flank.

With the deficit at the break still two goals, Hodgson’s men had to start strongly after half-time and the opposite happened.

Full-back Lowton had not scored in the Premier League since April 2013 and he became the most recent player to break a duck at Selhurst Park.

The defender produced a marauding run on the right, dribbling past Eze and Luka Milivojevic with ease before he bounced past Van Aanholt.

After he played a one-two with Rodriguez on the edge of the area, Lowton applied the desired finish when he brilliantly volleyed home to make it 3-0 after 47 minutes.

Palace summoned Andros Townsend and Jean-Philippe Mateta but the race was run for the home side.

Burnley’s day did end on a sour note though when captain Bee Mee left the pitch on a stretcher after an innocuous coming together with Ayew.

The centre-back was put in a neck brace following a five-minute delay and Pieters was also forced off late on with an injury.

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MARTINEZ RESCUES VILLA IN BRIGHTON DRAW

Aston Villa goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez was the hero as his side held Brighton & Hove Albion to a goalless draw at the Amex Stadium.

Brighton had the better of the chances in the first half, with Leandro Trossard and Dan Burn denied superbly by Martinez.

Although Ross Barkley fired an effort straight at Robert Sanchez for the visitors, Brighton continued to threaten after the interval.

Alexis Mac Allister’s deflected shot drew another smart stop from Martinez and, after Neal Maupay fired just wide, Joel Veltman and Adam Lallana were also kept out by the Argentinian, who made nine saves in total to keep his 12th clean sheet of the season.

Villa move up to eighth place with 36 points, four points behind fourth-placed Liverpool, with two matches in hand.

Brighton, who extended their unbeaten Premier League run to a club-record six matches, are 15th on 26 points

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MAN CITY DRAW EVERTON IN FA CUP QUARTER FINALS.

Premier League leaders Manchester City will travel to Everton in the FA Cup quarter-finals.

Pep Guardiola’s City, the competition favourites, reached the last eight with a 3-1 win at Swansea on Wednesday while the Toffees went through with a memorable 5-4 defeat of Tottenham after extra time.

City, who have won their last 15 games in all competitions in a record-breaking run for an English top-flight side, are also due to face the Merseysiders in a rearranged Premier League game next week.

It is a game in which there could be some needle after Guardiola criticised Everton’s response to the postponing of their scheduled match in December when five City players tested positive for Covid-19.

In another mouthwatering quarter-final tie, Manchester United, currently second in the Premier League, were handed a trip to third-placed Leicester.

The two sides fought out a 2-2 draw when they last met on St Stephen’s Day.

Southampton’s reward for their victory over Wolves on Thursday was an away trip along the south coast to Championship side Bournemouth.

The final tie saw the winners of Thursday’s late game between Barnsley and Chelsea drawn at home to Sheffield United.

The ties are scheduled to take place over the weekend of March 20-21.

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Man City into FA Cup quarters with record 15th straight win

It’s 15 straight victories and counting for Pep Guardiola’s irrepressible team, which has another domestic treble in its sights.

One of the most relentless schedules in the history of English soccer hasn’t stopped Manchester City putting together a record-setting run of wins.

It’s 15 straight victories and counting for Pep Guardiola’s irrepressible team, which has another domestic treble in its sights.

By beating second-tier Swansea 3-1 to reach the FA Cup quarterfinals on Wednesday, City broke the record for most consecutive wins in all competitions by a top-flight team, a mark that had lasted for nearly 130 years. Preston won 14 in a row in 1892 and that was later matched by Arsenal’s class of 1987.

City has gone one better during a pandemic, when matches in the Premier League or domestic cup competitions are being played every three or four days to fit them into a condensed season that started a month later than usual.

Indeed, by also advancing last month to the English League Cup final, City has played every weekend and midweek since Nov. 21 except for an eight-day break from Dec. 26-Jan. 3 during which the team’s training ground was closed because of a coronavirus outbreak. The number of first-team players to test positive ran into double figures.

“That means a lot in this toughest period, in the Christmas and winter time,” said Guardiola, whose side leads the Premier League by five points with a game in hand. “To do what we have done in this time is quite remarkable.”

Guardiola earned his 200th win in 268 games in charge of the team.

City won 20 straight games in all competitions from August-December 2017, also under Guardiola, but one of those victories came in a penalty shootout in the League Cup after a 0-0 draw after extra time.

Also advancing to the last eight was Sheffield United, a 1-0 winner against second-tier Bristol City, and Leicester, which beat Brighton by the same score thanks to Kelechi Iheanacho’s goal in the fourth minute of stoppage time.

EASY FOR CITY

In the 2018-19 season, City became the first English team to achieve the domestic treble, beating Swansea en route to winning the FA Cup that year by coming from 2-0 down to win 3-2 in the quarterfinals.

City didn’t need to produce anything as dramatic this time, taking the lead in the 30th when Kyle Walker’s low cross into the penalty area was missed by the sliding Ferran Torres at the near post and ended up creeping inside the far post.

Rodri played in Raheem Sterling to double the advantage in the 47th, before Gabriel Jesus controlled a header across goal by Bernardo Silva and slammed in a left-footed shot three minutes later.

Morgan Whittaker grabbed a consolation for Swansea, which included two United States internationals — Jordan Morris, who made his first start, and Paul Arriola, who made his debut as a second-half substitute following his loan move from D.C. United. Their U.S. teammate, Zeck Steffen, played in goal for City.

Everton was hosting Tottenham in the late game Wednesday.

Manchester United and Bournemouth advanced to the quarterfinals on Tuesday.

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MIKE DEAN TO MISS PREMIER LEAGUE MATCHES AFTER DEATH THREATS

Referee Mike Dean has decided not to officiate at any Premier League games this weekend after he and his family received death threats following recent controversial red card decisions, media reported on Monday.

Dean was criticised after he sent off Southampton defender Jan Bednarek during their 9-0 defeat at Manchester United last Tuesday and West Ham United midfielder Tomas Soucek during Saturday’s 0-0 draw away to Fulham.

Bednarek was sent off for a last-man challenge on United forward Anthony Martial, while Soucek was dismissed after appearing to accidentally elbow Fulham striker Aleksandar Mitrovic in the face.

Both decisions were overturned on appeal.

Mike Riley, chief of the refereeing body PGMOL, condemned the abuse directed at Dean.

“Threats and abuse of this nature are totally unacceptable and we fully support Mike’s decision to report these messages his family received to the police,” Riley said.

“Nobody should be a victim of abhorrent messages like this. Online abuse is unacceptable in any walk of life and more needs to be done to tackle the problem.”

Dean will take charge of Leicester City’s FA Cup fifth-round tie at home to Brighton & Hove Albion on Wednesday, the BBC said.

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CITY LOSS: KLOPP SAYS LIVERPOOL AFTER TOP FOUR

Jurgen Klopp says top four is now Liverpool’s ‘main target’ after suggesting Alisson’s blunders at Manchester City could have been down to cold feet.

The Liverpool goalkeeper twice passed straight to City players as Pep Guardiola’s side stormed to a 4-1 win at Anfield which puts them five points clear of Manchester United at the top of the Premier League table and 10 points ahead of defending champions Liverpool, with a game in hand on both.

Liverpool currently sit fourth, one point ahead of West Ham and Klopp accepts his priority is now to ensure his side qualify for next season’s Champions League, with a successful title defence looking out of reach.

“That is of course our main target, that is clear,” Klopp said when asked about a top-four finish. “We will try everything.

“There is enough games to play to secure that – but we have to win games and tonight we didn’t.”

On Alisson’s errors, which allowed City to add their crucial second and third goals through Ilkay Gundogan and Raheem Sterling, Klopp said: “You cannot hide them.

“It’s two [instances] where we didn’t give him a lot of options, especially around the first one. I think the second one, yeah, he just mis-hit the ball.

“I don’t know, it’s not a real explanation for it but maybe he had cold feet or something. It sounds funny but could be. But there’s still the opportunity to kick it in the stands.

“But Ali has saved our life plenty of times, no doubt about that, and tonight he made two mistakes and that’s how it is.”

Despite the mistakes and impact of the defeat on Liverpool’s hopes of winning back-to-back Premier League titles, Klopp insisted he was happy with the performance of his team.

He felt his side could have gone on to win when Mohamed Salah’s penalty cancelled out Gundogan’s opener and believes Liverpool would have been closer to City if they’d been at that level throughout the season.

“If you lose 4-1 it is of course not our day but a big part of the game was a brilliant game from my side,” he said.

“We played really good football. I really liked it. In the first half we played really good football. Against City it doesn’t mean you are 2-0 or 3-0 up it only means you’re in the game. I’m not sure what the possession was but it was for sure not what it’s like usually for City.

“Start of the second half, City changed their system slightly to a 4-4-2. It’s a little adaptation in the end but in that start of the second half we didn’t give enough options to play and gave the first goal away.

“They scored that goal, we scored the equaliser, which in that moment it looked like the game could now go in our direction. We looked really good again.

“We make two massive mistakes, that’s clear. Everybody saw them, they used them. 3-1 down in a game like this is really tough to take and then [Phil] Foden with a genius situation where he scores the fourth goal.

“The performance was good most of the time. Really, really good, on a high level. If we’d played more often like tonight, we would not be 10 points behind City.

“The goals, we made massive mistakes. Against each team it is a problem, against City it’s a killer. And that’s why we lost the game.”

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HORROR DAY FOR ALLISON BECKER AS CITY THRASH LIVERPOOL AT ANFIELD

Liverpool’s title defence appears to have ended at the feet of goalkeeper Alisson Becker as two awful errors gifted Manchester City a 4-1 victory at Anfield.

With the match evenly-poised at 1-1 with 17 minutes remaining the Brazil international’s errant passing presented the league leaders with two goals – including Raheem Sterling’s first at Anfield since leaving in 2015.

Alisson was back in the team after missing the midweek defeat to Brighton with illness but he will be sick when he watches back his part in City’s first victory on this ground since 2003 and only their second in 34 visits.

Mohamed Salah’s 63rd-minute penalty – ending a home goal drought nine minutes short of seven hours – had cancelled out the opener from Ilkay Gundogan, who redeemed himself after missing from the spot in the first half.

Alisson then scuffed a pass straight to Phil Foden, who drove forward and crossed for Gundogan to make it nine goals in his last 11 league matches.

Worse was to follow as the Brazilian then repeated the error even closer to goal with Bernardo Silva teeing up Sterling to nod home his 100th goal for Pep Guardiola, with Foden adding the finishing touches late on.

Victory extended City’s winning run to 14 matches and left Liverpool 10 points beind having played one match more and even in this season of surprises a comeback from that position seems unlikely.

It meant Gundogan’s penalty miss late in the first half, City’s third this season and their third in four attempts in this fixture – and Guardiola kicking a bucket in frustration were distant memories.

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LEICESTER HELD TO GOALESS DRAW BY WOLVES

Leicester were held to a scrappy stalemate at Wolves as the Foxes missed the chance to apply some serious pressure at the top of the Premier League.

Brendan Rodgers’ side would have gone level with Manchester United in second with victory but were forced to settle for a 0-0 draw at Molineux.

Wolves started brightly, with Ruben Neves firing over on 11 minutes before Adama Traore, who caused problems with his pace and skill throughout, had a shot deflected wide by James Justin.

Leicester finished the first half on the front foot, as a neat one-two between Harvey Barnes and Kelechi Iheanacho set up James Maddison, but Jonny twice made important blocks in quick succession.

Two substitutes had great chances to earn victory. Firstly, Wolves’ Fabio Silva had a close-range shot brilliantly saved by Kasper Schmeichel.

Then Jamie Vardy came off the bench on his return from injury and headed wide in stoppage time.

Leicester remain in third place on 43 points, two behind Man Utd, while Wolves stay in 14th with 27 points.

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HARRY KANE RETURNS TO INSPIRE SPURS WIN OVER WESTBROM

Harry Kane highlighted his importance to Tottenham as he returned from injury and helped them stop the rot by scoring in a 2-0 win over West Brom.

Kane had missed the last two and a half games after coming off with an ankle injury at half-time against Liverpool and things could hardly have gone worse for Jose Mourinho’s men in that time as they were beaten in all three to lose ground in the race for the top four.

But the England captain made a quickfire return and put Spurs on their way against the Baggies with his 13th Premier League goal of the season, with Son Heung-min also finding the net in a much-needed win.

It is no surprise that the trusted duo of Kane and Son were the men to step up as between them they have scored 26 of their side’s 36 league goals this season and it was timely too, as it helps Spurs get back on track ahead of a big week with an FA Cup fifth round tie at Everton preceding a trip to Manchester City next weekend.

West Brom had drawn at City and Liverpool but were always hanging on here and their fight against relegation is looking a forlorn one, sitting 11 points from safety.

Spurs had been shot-shy in their previous two games without Kane, but they had a flurry of early efforts in the opening 20 minutes and could have taken a grip of the game.

Kane was the obvious catalyst and he had a number of them, but was unusually rusty in front of goal.

First he hit the stanchion after being set up by Serge Aurier and then rolled an effort wide after Tanguy Ndombele’s through-ball set him clear.

He saw another effort blocked when he might have normally scored before testing Sam Johnstone’s handling with a fierce shot at the far post.

It was a siege by the hosts and Johnstone had to make another fine save before the break to keep his side level, clawing away Aurier’s header from a corner at the far post.

In the end, Mourinho’s men almost went in at half-time trailing as a defensive slip gave West Brom their best opening. They made their way down the right and Davinson Sanchez left Mbaye Diagne unmarked, but the striker’s header was saved on the line by Hugo Lloris.

Son missed another chance within seconds of the restart as Johnstone’s feet denied him from Kane’s defence-splitting pass, but it was only a matter of time for Spurs.

The Baggies could not rely on Kane continuing to miss and so it proved in the 54th minute.

Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg found the striker in space with an accurate pass and Kane made no mistake with a low finish. It was his 20th goal of the season in all competitions and his 208th for Spurs, matching Bobby Smith as their all-time second-highest scorer.

Four minutes later it was 2-0 as Spurs hit West Brom with a devastating counter-attack.

Kane’s clever chest pass set Lucas Moura free and the Brazilian, making his first Premier League start since October, carried the ball 60 yards before teeing up Son, who smashed home to end a six-game drought.

The Baggies tried to mount a response and Diagne twice had goals ruled out for offside as Spurs ended their slide in comfortable fashion.