Mahrez misses late penalty as Man City held by West Ham in thrilling 2-2 draw
MANCHESTER City came from two goals to draw 2-2 with West Ham but Premier League title rivals Liverpool were handed hope thanks to Riyad Mahrez’s late missed penalty.
The Reds celebrated an FA Cup triumph on Saturday and their chances of an unprecedented quadruple looked very much alive after Jarrod Bowen’s double put West Ham 2-0 up at the break.
Yet Jack Grealish pulled one back for City who, despite more shaky defending, drew level when Vladimir Coufal headed into his own goal.
The stage looked set for Mahrez to seal a brilliant comeback win when Craig Dawson’s foul on Gabriel Jesus was spotted by VAR, but Lukasz Fabianski made a strong save to keep Liverpool, who are four points back with a game in hand, in the title hunt.
City had control of possession early on but West Ham were dangerous on the counter and that tactic paid dividends in the 24th minute when Bowen beat the offside trap, rounded Ederson and coolly squeezed home.
A shocked City initially struggled to respond, though Jesus’ dipping shot almost found the bottom-left corner in the 36th minute.
Yet West Ham struck again before the interval - Bowen engineering space on the edge of the box and drilling a crisp finish beyond Ederson.
City’s response came inside four minutes of the restart, Grealish’s volley deflecting in off Dawson.
Grealish brilliantly teed up a chance for Bernardo Silva that drew a superb stop from Fabianski, though shambolic defending might have cost City had Bowen or Michail Antonio being more clinical.
West Ham were made to pay with 21 minutes left - Coufal heading Mahrez’s free-kick beyond Fabianski.
Aymeric Laporte diverted a goal-bound Bowen shot wide before City were awarded a golden opportunity to win it when Dawson brought down Jesus.
Mahrez stepped up but Fabianski guessed the right way, much to Pep Guardiola’s frustration.
City would have moved six points clear with a win, and though Liverpool have two games remaining, they would have required a significant swing in goal difference.
As it is, Liverpool - who face Southampton on Tuesday - might well be relying on an old Anfield hero, as Steven Gerrard takes his Aston Villa side to the Etihad Stadium on the final day of the season.