City stylish as Spurs and Reds win ugly
● Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah scored his first goal in four matches to give his side a 1-0 win over Huddersfield Town in the Premier League yesterday, lifting the Merseyside club back up to second in the table.
Salah scored after 20 minutes and it remained the only goal of the game as Liverpool boss Juergen Klopp condemned his close friend and compatriot in the opposite dugout, David Wagner, to a sixth defeat in nine league matches this season.
The breakthrough came when Xherdan Shaqiri crafted himself some space to play a precise pass to Salah in the area. With one touch, the Egyptian found the bottom far corner for his fourth goal of the season.
Huddersfield rallied and almost pulled it back, with a long-range effort from Jonathan Hogg hitting the post and Philip Billing’s distant free kick curling just wide. They then had a penalty appeal turned down for a clear handball by James Milner.
Huddersfield fans thought they had seen their team score their first home goal in six months when Alex Pritchard latched onto a high ball and dinked it past goalkeeper Alisson just before the break. However, the strike was ruled out for offside.
Manchester City brushed aside Burnley 50 to go top of the Premier League after Chelsea snatched a point in a dramatic late finish against Manchester United.
City’s win gave them a two-point cushion over Chelsea and Tottenham — 1-0 winners at West Ham — but Liverpool joined them on 23 points.
Pep Guardiola’s side made it seven wins from nine league games as Burnley goalkeeper Joe Hart endured a miserable return to his former club at the Etihad.
Sergio Aguero opened the scoring in the 17th minute before second-half goals rained in from Bernardo Silva, Fernandinho, Riyad Mahrez and Leroy Sane.
Midfielder Kevin De Bruyne came on for just his second appearance of the season following a knee injury he suffered in August.
“After we scored the second goal and third it was much easier,” said Guardiola. “And of course it’s good news that Kevin De Bruyne is back.”
Earlier, Ross Barkley scored in the sixth minute of injury time at Stamford Bridge to level the match at 2-2 after Anthony Martial had scored twice in the second half to cancel out Antonio Rudiger’s opener.
Erik Lamela struck with a cool header late in the first half at the London Stadium to give Tottenham their fourth successive league victory.
That made it five goals in just eight appearances this season for Lamela, who was making his first league start of the campaign.
Bournemouth and Southampton played out a goalless draw, Cardiff beat Fulham 4-2 at home, Newcastle United were beaten 1-0 at home by Chris Hughton’s Brighton and Hove Albion and the highly fancied Wolverhampton Wanderers suffered a 2-0 home defeat to Watford.