Liverpool piled on the distress for Manchester Metropolis because the Premier League leaders beat the troubled champions 2-0 at Anfield, whereas Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim earned his first league win with a 4-0 rout of Everton on Sunday.
Arne Slot’s facet moved 9 factors away from second-placed Arsenal after Cody Gakpo’s first-half opener and Mohamed Salah’s late penalty dealt one other blow to reeling Metropolis, who’re languishing 11 factors behind Liverpool in fifth place.
Metropolis have misplaced 4 successive top-flight video games for the primary time since 2008, making them the primary Premier League champions to endure such a dismal run the 12 months after claiming the title.
Within the 32 Premier League seasons, solely 3 times have groups come from 11 or extra factors behind at any level to win the title.
Metropolis have clawed again important deficits to win the Premier League within the Guardiola period, however they’ve by no means managed to carry the title after being behind by greater than 10 factors.
Metropolis’s seven-game winless run ranks as boss Pep Guardiola’s longest barren streak in his glittering managerial profession.
Simply weeks after he signed a brand new two-year contract, Liverpool followers taunted Guardiola with chants of “you are getting sacked within the morning”, prompting a defiant response from the Spaniard, who held up six fingers for example the variety of titles he has gained with Metropolis.
Liverpool have gained 18 of their 20 video games in all competitions since Slot changed Jurgen Klopp within the close-season.
The Reds have gained 11 of their 13 Premier League matches and are agency favourites to win the title for the primary time since 2020.
Guardiola sprang a shock by beginning Stefan Ortega in aim as an alternative of the dropped Ederson, however the German needed to decide the ball out of his web after simply 12 minutes.
Metropolis’s defence was in disarray as Salah curled a shot in the direction of the far publish and Gakpo pounced to poke house from nearly on the road.
Salah’s 78th-minute penalty, awarded for Ortega’s foul on Luis Diaz, was a dagger within the coronary heart of Metropolis’s title hopes.
Amorim stole the highlight in Sunday’s early video games by extending his unbeaten begin with United to a few matches.
United have been held to a 1-1 draw at Ipswich in his first Premier League recreation final Sunday, earlier than the Portuguese boss earned his maiden win with United in a 3-2 success in opposition to Bodo/Glimt at Previous Trafford within the Europa League on Thursday.
– Man Utd energy surge –
The 39-year-old, who arrived from Sporting Lisbon to exchange the sacked Erik ten Hag in November, has warned United would “endure for an extended interval” earlier than they’ll count on to problem for the title.
This was essentially the most encouraging results of Amorim’s transient time at ninth-placed United as they recovered from a sluggish begin to dispatch lowly Everton.
Marcus Rashford’s Thirty fourth-minute drive from the sting of the world took a deflection off Jarrad Branthwaite earlier than flashing into the web.
United struck once more seven minutes later as Branthwaite misplaced possession to Amad Diallo and Bruno Fernandes teed up Joshua Zirkzee to transform with ease.
Rashford underlined United’s superiority simply 20 seconds after the interval as he utilized a cool end to Diallo’s incisive go for his seventh aim this season.
Zirkee struck once more within the sixty fourth minute with a composed strike from the influential Diallo’s help after shambolic Everton defending.
“The consequence was good however we have been pragmatic. It was not fairly,” Amorim mentioned. “It’s a rollercoaster. We’ve got some moments once we are good however then now we have moments when now we have to endure.”
At Stamford Bridge, Chelsea prolonged their unbeaten run in all competitions to 6 video games with a 3-0 win in opposition to Aston Villa, whose dismal winless streak reached eight matches.
Enzo Maresca’s males look able to securing Champions League qualification after a 3rd successive win within the area of eight days moved them degree on factors with second-placed Arsenal.
Nicolas Jackson and Enzo Fernandez scored within the first half earlier than Cole Palmer struck within the closing levels.
Seventh-placed Tottenham’s high 4 hopes have been dented by a 1-1 draw in opposition to 10-man Fulham.
Brennan Johnson slotted Tottenham into the lead from Timo Werner’s 54th-minute go, however Tom Cairney curled Fulham’s equaliser into the far nook after 67 minutes.
Cairney was despatched off with seven minutes left after his foul on Dejan Kulusevski was upgraded from referee Darren Bond’s preliminary yellow card to a purple after VAR intervened.
smg/nf
