Liverpool rout Brentford, Man City held by Chelsea
LONDON: Mohamed Salah returned with a goal as Premier League leaders Liverpool routed Brentford 4-1 despite a rash of injuries, while Manchester City’s title defence was damaged by a 1-1 draw against Chelsea on Saturday.
Arsenal demolished Burnley 5-0 to keep the pressure on Liverpool, who are two points above the second-placed Gunners and fourahead of third placed City.
Salah came off the bench to replace the injured Diogo Jota in his first Liverpool appearance since their win over Newcastle on New Year’s Day. Having returned from the hamstring injury he sustained on Egypt duty at the Africa Cup of Nations, Salah made up for lost time with his first goal for the Reds since the Newcastle game.
The 31-year-old’s 19th goal in all competitions this term put Liverpool on course for a sixth win in their last seven league games. The much-maligned Darwin Nunez had given Jurgen Klopp’s side the lead with a sublime chip late in the first half at the Gtech Community Stadium. Alexis Mac Allister doubled Liverpool’s advantage after the interval with just his second goal this season.
Ivan Toney got one back for Brentford, but Cody Gakpo netted in the closing stages. While the victory was valuable for Klopp, it came with a downside as firsthalf injuries to Nunez, Jota and Curtis Jones added to Liverpool’s increasingly packed treatment room.
“Mo played the first game for weeks. He could have had a hattrick. The goal he scored was absolutely outstanding. It would be helpful if we had a bit more than one player for each position. But that’s the situation and we cannot change it,” Klopp said.
Manchester City’s attempt to win an unprecedented fourth successive title is under threat after a disappointing result at the Etihad Stadium.
Chelsea took the lead in the 41st minute as former City winger Raheem Sterling took
Nicolas Jackson’s pass and curled his shot into the far corner from 12 yards.
City laid siege to the Chelsea goal and finally drew level in the 83rd minute when Rodri’s shot deflected in off Trevoh Chalobah.
At Turf Moor, Arsenal made it five consecutive wins with another display of their goal power. Mikel Arteta’s side have beaten Liverpool and won 6-0 at West Ham in their most notable results since a revitalising warmweather training camp in Dubai.
Tottenham’s top four bid suffered a blow as Joao Gomes struck twice in Wolves’ surprise 2-1 win in north London.
Aston Villa took advantage of Tottenham’s stumble to climb back into fourth place with a 21 win at Fulham thanks to Ollie Watkins’ brace. Nottingham Forest beat West Ham 2-0 at the City Ground in a major boost to their survival hopes.
Newcastle manager Eddie Howe avoided defeat against his former club Bournemouth in a 22 draw at St James’ Park.