10-man Chelsea hold Arsenal
IMAGE: Trevoh Chalobah celebrates with Pedro Neto after scoring Chelsea’s first goal against Arsenal at Stamford Bridge in London on Sunday. Photograph: David Klein/Reuters
Arsenal missed a chance to tighten their grip on the Premier League title race with a 1-1 draw at 10-man Chelsea on Sunday, while Liverpool’s Alexander Isak scored his first league goal in a 2-0 win over West Ham United that halted their worst run in more than 70 years.
Manchester United ended Crystal Palace’s nine-month unbeaten home run with a 2-1 comeback victory, Aston Villa climbed to fourth with a 1-0 victory over lowly Wolverhampton Wanderers, and Brighton & Hove Albion won 2-0 at Nottingham Forest to go fifth.
At Stamford Bridge, Chelsea held the Gunners to a draw in a highly charged top-of-the-table London derby, with Mikel Merino cancelling out Trevoh Chalobah’s Chelsea opener.
IMAGE: Mikel Merino scores the equaliser for Arsenal in the 59th minute. Photograph: David Klein/Reuters
Chelsea were already a man down when defender Chalobah flicked a header into the net from a pinpoint corner by captain Reece James three minutes after the break.Moises Caicedo had been sent off in the 38th minute after a VAR check for landing a crunching tackle on Merino’s ankle. Arsenal replied when Merino rose to meet a Bukayo Saka cross in the 59th minute.
“A really tough one,” Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta told Sky Sports. “Two teams that play with a lot of intensity and aggression, you could sense it in every tackle.
“Two top teams fighting for the Premier League so it’s normal. We scored a brilliant goal. We had two or three big chances.”
Arsenal sit five points clear at the top of the table on 30 points ahead of Manchester City, who beat Leeds United 3-2 on Saturday, with Chelsea third on 24.
Liverpool halt woeful run
IMAGE: Liverpool’s Alexander Isak celebrates scoring against West Ham United. Photograph: Tony O Brien/Reuters
Champions Liverpool had lost nine of their last 12 games in all competitions, and manager Arne Slot took drastic measures, leaving Mohamed Salah out of his starting lineup for the first time in a league game.
Isak, who had looked short of form and fitness, spurned two opportunities before the break before slotting home a Cody Gakpo pull-back on the hour mark.
“I’ve been waiting for it and chasing it (his first Premier League goal for Liverpool) and sometimes it takes longer than you expect but happy to score a goal and help towards the win today,” Isak told the BBC.
“It’s never easy, as a striker you need momentum. We defended really well and scored twice so happy days.”
Liverpool’s cause was helped by Lucas Paqueta’s double booking for dissent with less than 10 minutes to play, before Gakpo added a second in the 92nd minute.
Liverpool’s victory, only their second in eight league games, moved them up to eighth with 21 points, while West Ham, whose players and fans paid tribute to former captain and manager Billy Bonds who died aged 79 on Sunday, are 17th with 11.
Zirkzee, Mount lead Man United fightback
IMAGE: Crystal Palace’s Adam Wharton and Manchester United’s Mason Mount fight for the ball. Photograph: Boby Melville/Reuters
At Selhurst Park, Joshua Zirkzee and Mason Mount struck in the second half to erase as Manchester United battled back for only their second away victory in 12 games.
United climbed above Palace into seventh on 21 points, while Oliver Glasner’s team are ninth on 20.
Jean-Philippe Mateta struck from the penalty spot in the 36th minute after Leny Yoro’s reckless tackle.
Zirkzee levelled in the 54th minute when he chested down a free kick before firing into the far corner and Mount struck the winner when a free kick was touched into his path and he unleashed a low shot through a sea of Palace legs.
Kamara stunner lifts Villa to win
IMAGE: Aston Villa’s Boubacar Kamara scores the winner against Wolverhampton Wanderers. Photograph: Paul Childs/Reuters
A superb strike from Boubacar Kamara earned Aston Villa a 1-0 victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers and moved the hosts up to third in the standings.
The visitors had the better of the first-half chances and Jorgen Strand Larsen thought he had put them ahead but was denied by the offside flag, before a sensational Emiliano Martinez save kept the scores level just before the break.
It took until the second half for Villa to really get going, with Wolves missing several more chances before Kamara gave the home crowd something to shout about, arrowing a thunderous shot into the top corner in the 67th minute.
Villa stood firm to see out a fifth successive win in all competitions and move third in the standings, one point behind second-placed Manchester City. Wolves remained in deep trouble, bottom on two points and nine points from safety.
Brighton down Forest to go fifth
IMAGE: Brighton & Hove Albion’s Stefanos Tzimas celebrates scoring their second goal against Nottingham Forest. Photograph: Andrew Boyers/Reuters
Goals by Maxim De Cuyper and Stefanos Tzimas gave Brighton & Hove Albion a 2-0 win over Nottingham Forest, a result that moved Fabian Huerzeler’s side to fifth place.
The visitors set the tempo early, firing 13 shots in the first half compared to Forest’s eight, while enjoying the lion’s share of possession.
The breakthrough came in first-half stoppage time when Georginio Rutter delivered a precise ball into the box, finding an unmarked De Cuyper in acres of space. The Belgian full back calmly slotted his effort past Forest goalkeeper Matz Sels to register his second league goal of the campaign.
Brighton sealed victory in the 88th minute when 19-year-old Greek forward Tzimas pounced on a poor header back by Forest defender Morato.
Forest had entered the game buoyed by consecutive league victories, including a 3-0 win at champions Liverpool.
