Man City win to stay in charge of EPL title race
Madrid win again despite Benzema’s missed penalty kicks Arsenal end skid, Everton secure draw
LONDON, April 21, (AP): It’s still advantage Manchester City in the Premier League title race.
Three second-half goals earned City a 3-0 win over Brighton, lifting Pep Guardiola’s team back into first place after being ousted - only for 24 hours as it turned out - by title rival Liverpool.
Anxiety was sweeping around Etihad Stadium, with the groans becoming more audible as City’s players struggled to make their dominance count in the early stages of the second half.
The home fans needn’t have worried. Riyad Mahrez broke the deadlock in the 53rd minute in slightly fortuitous circumstances, with his shot ricocheting off Brighton defender Joel Veltman and over goalkeeper Robert Sanchez.
Another deflection, this time off Phil Foden’s long-range shot, made it 2-0 in the 65th and Bernardo Silva added a third in the 82nd after City picked off the visitors as they tried to play the ball out from the back.
City can retain its title by winning its remaining six games, the next being against relegation-threatened Watford at home on Saturday. Liverpool, which is one point behind, hosts Everton the following day.
“We know what we have to do,” Guardiola said. “If we drop two points, Liverpool will be champions.”
It didn’t escape the meticulous Guardiola that the victory assured City a top-four finish and a place in the Champions League next season. That was a given, though.
There were also a couple of injuries that might prove telling for City with the important fixtures coming thick and fast in the final weeks, including a pair of games against Real Madrid in the Champions League semifinals.
Both were in defense, with Nathan Ake going off with a twisted ankle to be replaced by Ruben Dias for his first appearance in seven weeks after injury - and John Stones also coming off with muscle tightness.
It’s even tighter in the race for a top-four finish and qualification for the Champions League.
That’s because Arsenal ended a three-match losing run by beating Chelsea 4-2 to move tied for points with fourth-place Tottenham, which is only ahead of its north London rival on goal difference.
The two teams - who must still face each other on May 12 - are five points behind third-place Chelsea, which has a game in hand.
Eddie Nketiah scored two of Arsenal’s goals as he continued up front instead of the fit-again Alexandre
MADRID, April 21, (AP): Not even an off-day for Karim Benzema was enough to keep Real Madrid from moving closer to clinching the Spanish league title.
Benzema missed two penalty kicks seven minutes apart in the second half but Madrid went on to earn a 3-1 win at Osasuna to open a 17-point lead over second-place Atletico Madrid, which can no longer catch its rival as both teams have five games left to play. Barcelona is 18 points back but has seven games left to play, meaning it still has a theoretical chance to catch Madrid.
“It was another small step toward reaching our objective,” Madrid midfielder Federico Valverde said. “It was a difficult first half but we corrected our mistakes and finished playing well.”
Benzema went scoreless for only the second time in the last 11 games in all competitions. Both of his penalty kicks were saved by Osasuna goalkeeper Sergio Herrera in the 52nd and 59th minutes. He targeted both of his shots to the same side, with Herrera diving to his right to make the saves.
“It’s not a big deal,” Valverde said. “It can happen. He has scored many goals for us but today it wasn’t meant to be. We know that he will still score a lot in the remaining matches this season.”
SOCCER
Benzema is the league’s leading scorer with 25 goals and has netted 15 times in the last 10 matches in all competitions. The French striker scored hat tricks and decisive goals to help Madrid reach the Champions League semifinals.
Madrid defender David Alaba opened the scoring in the 12th minute after an assist by Benzema, and forward Marco Asensio added to the lead in the 45th after the hosts had equalized through Ante Budimir in the 13th. Lucas Vázquez sealed the victory in stoppage time.
Osasuna, sitting in ninth place and coming off two straight victories, had a goal disallowed for offside in the 32nd.
Alaba had to be substituted at halftime because of an injury, creating a concern ahead of Madrid’s first leg against Manchester City in the semifinals of the Champions League next week.
Atlético Madrid’s struggles in attack continued in a 0-0 draw at home
against relegation-threatened Granada.
It was the fourth time in the last five matches that Atlético failed to score. It had been winless in three games in a row before a last-minute 2-1 win against Espanyol on Sunday.
The result left Diego Simeone’s team in second place, one point ahead of both Barcelona and Sevilla. The Catalan club visits sixth-place Real Sociedad on Thursday, while Sevilla plays at second-to-last place Levante.
Atlético opened a four-point cushion over fifth-place Real Betis, the first team outside the Champions League qualification places. Manuel Pellegrini’s Betis lost 1-0 to Elche at home on Tuesday.
Granada had lost two in a row and had conceded 12 goals in its last four matches, but Atlético managed only one shot on target from 22 total attempts at the Wanda Metropolitano Stadium.
Granada coach Aitor Karanka made his debut. The team stayed in the relegation zone despite the draw, one point from safety in 18th place.
Atlético has only 11 points of 30 possible against the bottom five clubs in the standings - Mallorca, Cádiz, Granada, Levante and Alavés.
Getafe moved five points clear of the relegation zone with a 2-0 win at Celta Vigo, with Borja Mayoral scoring a goal in each half.
It was the first away win for Getafe after 16 consecutive matches without a road victory, dating to last season.
Sitting in 14th place, Getafe is unbeaten in four straight league games.
Celta, in 11th place, lost its second in a row at home.