With City drawing after a weak performance, Chelsea move 7 points clear into the lead at the end of the weekend. Elsewhere, Tottenham got the better of Arsenal, and Liverpool and Everton played to a scoreless draw.
Let’s get to the games:
Tottenham (2) – Arsenal (1)
Spurs leapfrog Arsenal in the standings after a thrilling comeback led by Henry Kane’s second-half brace. 11 minutes in, Danny Welback flicked in a cross to Mesut Ozil who volleyed home Arsenal’s first goal. After the 60th minute, an Erik Lamela corner was directed home by Kane to equalize for Spurs. The win came in the dying minutes as an amazing Kane header to the far post send the home fans home with a victory.
Swansea City (1) – Sunderland (1)
Ki Sung-yueng starred for Swansea and insured them an important point with a key goal to get the 1-1 draw against his former squad. Liam Bridcutt found Jermain Defoe 20-yards from goal and Defoe promptly unleashed a shot past keeper Lukasz Fabianski to give Sunderland the 1-0 lead. Halfway through the second half, however, Swansea’s Kyle Naughton sent in a cross from the right and Ki executed an un-marked diving header to get the equalizer, and insure a share of the points.
Leicester City (0) – Crystal Palace (1)
Leicester City sunk deeper into the abyss of the table with another loss, this one at the hands of Crystal Palace, who seem revived under new gaffer Alan Pardew. Brede Hangeland, a halftime substitute, knocked a Dwight Gayle corner back in front of goal and Joe Ledley beautifully headed home the only goal of the day. Leicester had multiple chances through the match, but were unable to convert and now face a tough road for survival in the Premier League.
Queens Park Rangers (0) – Southampton (1)
After a dull start, few would have expected the late drama that sealed the win for Southampton, especially in a match in which QPR seemed the better side for most of the day. QPR spent the second half peppering the goal, having responded to new leadership and a call for “more flair” from the team. It was Southampton, though, that got the late goal in a moment of brilliance as Sadio Mane squeezed around QPR’s Steven Caulker and shot into the top corner for the goal. QPR responded and had a ball in the net only to be cancelled by the linesman’s offsides flag. The win keeps Southampton in third place at the end of the weekend, one point ahead of Manchester United.
Aston Villa (1) – Chelsea (2)
Aston Villa came in on an 11-hour goal drought, but Chelsea needed a second goal to get the victory as Jores Okore scored for Villa to equalize in the second half. The win put Chelsea up 7 points at the end of the day, as it was perfectly timed with a City draw. Chelsea opened the scoring with a long run by Oscar that resulted in a beautiful pass to Eden Hazard who easily scored from 8 yards out. Jores equalized to start the second half when Carles Gil crossed in and the Villa man knocked it in at the far post. Branislav Ivanovic made them pay for a lax defense in the 66th minute, though, as he half-volleyed a cross from 16-yards out into the top corner.
Manchester City (1) – Hull City (1)
Manchester City were the worse side for most of the day, and without a superb injury-time free-kick from James Milner, they would have left Hull with no points. 35 minutes in, David Meyler tapped in a rebound struck for Hull who are fighting for their league survival. City showed more urgency in the second half, but were still unable to effectively create chances. In stoppage time, James Milner stepped up for a free-kick and curled it home for the equalizer. City have now played six matched without midfielder Yaya Toure and not won any of them.
Everton (0) – Liverpool (0)
Liverpool looked the better team through most of the match, executing their free-flowing passing game that has been successful all campaign. Everton responded by working in the midfield and taking a more compact defensive approach to get the draw. Neither side displayed a great deal of quality, but even as Liverpool dominated second-half possession, they struggled to break down Everton and had limited chances to effect the game.
Burnley (2) – West Bromwich Albion (2)
West Brom fought back from two goals down to get the draw, keeping them one point above the drop zone. The scoring started for Burnley in the 11th minute, Dean Marney’s cross from the right was dummied by Ings, who then picked up Arfield’s header and hooked the ball across goal for Barnes to finish. In the 32rd minute, Burnley doubled their lead when Ings headed in a George Boyd cross off the post. Just before the halftime whistle, West Brom’s Callum McManaman’s corner came into the box and was headed in Brunt, whose shot bounced over the head of keeper Tom Heaton. The equalizer came in the 67th minute, as another corner into the box found Ideye all alone in the box and he headed home to get the draw.
Newcastle United (1) – Stoke City (1)
It took until the 74th minute for either team to break a boring draw, in a game that kept both teams mid-table at the end of the weekend. The first half was fairly even, while the second was more scrappy. Jack Colback put Newcastle ahead in the 74th minute with a strike that the visitors felt was good enough for the win. Stoke Substitute Peter Crouch grabbed a late equalizer, though, on a looping header that evaded keeper Fabricio Coloccini on the line to give them a share of the points. The teams remain 10th and 11th in the table, and both teams fans are hungry for a better performance going forward.
West Ham United (1) – Manchester United (1)
It took a stoppage-time strike by Daley Blind to rescue a share of the points for Manchester United, who seemed flat despite being almost totally healthy. Cheikhou Kouyate had the play of the weekend with a double-juggle and volley for West Ham’s first goal. The goal came four minutes into the second period, and showed United’s defensive flaws. The equalizer came when United’s Rojo lofted a ball into the box and a weak clearance dropped the ball to Blind who fired it home in the corner. The draw keeps United one point behind Southampton in 4th place