MAN UTD, CHELSEA SEAL CHAMPIONS LEAGUE SPOTS WITH TOP 4 FINISH
At 33, Vardy oldest to win Premier League golden boot with 23 goals; with 32 wins, Reds equal record
LONDON: Bruno Fernandes scored from the spot and Jesse Lingard pounced on a late goalkeeping error as Manchester United secured a 2-0 win at Leicester City in Sunday’s final round of the Premier League season to book their place in next season’s Champions League. Chelsea joined the Red Devils, Liverpool and Manchester City in Europe’s premier club competition after a 2-0 victory over Wolves at home, Mason Mount and Olivier Giroud being the scorers.
Aston Villa drew 1-1 at West Ham to avoid relegation. Their draw condemned Bournemouth, 3-1 victors at Everton, and Watford, beaten 3-2 by Arsenal, to be relegated to the second-tier Championship.
In a virtual Champions League play-off at the King Power Stadium, United struggled against a well-organised Leicester before Anthony Martial was brought down inside the penalty area by former United centre-back Jonny Evans in the 68th minute. Fernandes converted the penalty while Leicester’s misery was compounded by the sending-off of Evans, who received his second booking in second-half injury time as Brendan Rodgers’ side finished the game with 10 men. Lingard rubbed salt into the Foxes’ wounds after taking advantage of a mistake by Leicester goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel to score United’s second. Leicester, fifth in the final standings, will play in the Europa. At 33, Jamie Vardy became the oldest player the win the Premier League golden boot with 23 goals.
At Stamford Bridge, four minutes had been added to a nervy opening period when Marcos Alonso went down outside the Wolves area and Mount curled an exquisite free kick over the wall into the top left corner. Barely two minutes later Chelsea’s France striker Giroud showed all his experience and poise when he latched on to Mount’s pass, rounded goalkeeper Rui Patricio, held off Wolves captain Conor Coady and poked the ball home. Frank Lampard’s side needed a point to guarantee a Champions League spot in a three-way battle with United and Leicester.
Wolves manager Nuno Espirito Santo brought on early substitutes, including tricky winger Adama Traore at halftime, to put the pressure on as his side chased a Europa League place for the second straight season. A calmer Chelsea, with their two-goal cushion, rarely looked liked losing control though.
Chelsea finished fourth, level on points with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s United but behind on goal difference. Wolves finished seventh, with Jose Mourinho’s Tottenham taking the second Europa League spot after a 1-1 draw at Crystal Palace took them to sixth due to a superior goal difference. Harry Kane’s sharp early strike gave Spurs the lead but Palace, desperate to avoid an eighth successive defeat, hit back when Jeffrey Schlupp netted the equaliser early in the second half when the visitors failed to clear a corner. Wolves can qualify for the Europa if Arsenal lose to Chelsea in FA Cup final on Saturday.
LIVERPOOL, MAN CITY FINISH IN STYLE
In Newcastle, champions Liverpool came back from a goal down to win 3-1, finishing the season on 99 points. With 32 wins, they equalled the Premier League record for most victories in a single campaign. The Reds went behind to the fastest goal ever scored against them in the League era as Dwight Gayle latched on to Jonjo Shelvey’s free kick and slotted it past Alisson with 26 seconds on the clock.
Liverpool had made five changes to the team that started in the 5-3 win over Chelsea on Wednesday, and Virgil van Dijk equalised with a header seven minutes before halftime.
Belgian forward Origi, who had not scored in the league since his brace against Everton on Dec. 4, put the Reds in front in the 59th minute. Liverpool turned the screws on Newcastle by bringing on Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmino and Mohamed Salah in the 64th minute. Adopting a shoot-onsight policy as he chased his 20th league goal of the season, Salah hit the post and it was Mane who fired home in the 89th minute to round off the season in style for the Reds. Manchester City wrapped up their Premier League campaign with an emphatic 5-0 victory over relegated Norwich City in midfielder David Silva’s final league game for the champions of the previous two seasons. Brazil striker Gabriel Jesus stabbed home the opener from close in the 11th minute. Belgium international De Bruyne added the second with a sumptuous strike just before halftime, collecting Kyle Walker’s pass on the edge of the box and curling the ball past keeper Tim Krul.
Silva was involved in City’s third, passing wide to De Bruyne, whose inch-perfect pass played in Sterling to slot home past Krul in the 79th minute. Substitute Riyad Mahrez heaped more misery on Norwich in the 83rd minute with a right-footed strike into the bottom corner before De Bruyne scored his second of the night in the 90th minute.