Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah applauds fans as he walks off the pitch after being substituted.
| Photo Credit: Reuters

Manchester United’s Amad Diallo in action with Brentford’s Kevin Schade.
| Photo Credit: Reuters

Arsenal ignored their injury woes to close the gap on Premier League leaders Liverpool as Mikel Merino inspired a 2-0 win against Leicester, while Omar Marmoush’s hat-trick fired Manchester City’s 4-0 rout of top four rivals Newcastle on Saturday. Mikel Arteta‘s side were in danger of wasting a chance to put pressure on Liverpool in the title race as they laboured to make the breakthrough at the King Power Stadium. With his attacking options limited by a host of injuries, Arteta sent on Spain midfielder Merino to act as a makeshift striker in the closing stages.

It proved an inspired move as Merino netted twice in the last nine minutes to extend Arsenal’s unbeaten run in the league to 15 games.

In the 81st minute, Ethan Nwaneri swung a pin-point cross into the Leicester area and Merino found space to thump his header past Mads Hermansen from six yards.

Seven minutes later, Leandro Trossard whipped a cross into the six-yard box and Merino’s well-timed run eluded the Leicester defence as he slotted home to move second-placed Arsenal within four points of Liverpool.

With Kai Havertz ruled out for the season after suffering a hamstring injury blocking a shot during Arsenal’s recent training trip to Dubai, Arteta was left with a threadbare attack.

Gabriel Jesus, Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli were already sidelined by injuries.

Having lost 2-0 at Newcastle in the League Cup semi-final second leg before an extended break due to their early FA Cup exit, the Gunners returned to action with a vital victory.

Liverpool can increase the lead back to seven points if they beat lowly Wolves at Anfield on Sunday.

At the Etihad Stadium, Egypt forward Marmoush scored his first City goals since arriving from Eintracht Frankfurt during the January transfer window.

Marmoush ended a run of four games without a goal in the 19th minute as he sprinted onto Ederson‘s long kick and deftly lobbed Newcastle keeper Martin Dubravka.

Just five minutes later, Marmoush found the back of the net again with a powerful blast that took a deflection off Kieran Trippier as it whistled past Dubravka.

City sparkle

The 26-year-old wasn’t done, and he completed his 14-minute hat-trick in the 33rd minute.

Savinho’s pass found Marmoush in the Newcastle area and he was granted time and space to slot home for the first treble of his career.

James McAtee’s 84th minute volley capped a much-needed boost for City after Tuesday’s 3-2 defeat against Real Madrid in the Champions League play-off round first leg.

But there was a scare for City when Norway striker Erling Haaland was forced off with a potential knee injury in the closing stages.

Now fourth in the Premier League, Pep Guardiola’s men head to Madrid on Wednesday needing a second-leg revival to avoid European elimination.

Seventh-placed Newcastle are three points adrift of the top four in the race to qualify for next season’s Champions League.

Third-placed Nottingham Forest slumped to a 2-1 defeat Fulham.

Emile Smith Rowe netted in the 15th minute for Fulham and although Chris Wood equalised in the 37th minute, Calvin Bassey’s header sealed the points in the 62nd minute.

Bournemouth are up to fifth as their unlikely bid to qualify for the Champions League gathered pace with a 3-1 win at bottom of the table Southampton.

Dango Ouattara headed home in the 14th minute before Ryan Christie’s fierce finish two minutes later.

Kamaldeen Sulemana got one back in the 72nd minute, but Marcus Tavernier sealed the points in the 83rd minute.

Ten-man Ipswich held on for a 1-1 draw at Aston Villa.

Ipswich defender Axel Tuanzebe was sent off just before half-time after earning a second yellow card for a foul on Jacob Ramsey.

Liam Delap put Ipswich ahead from Omari Hutchinson’s 56th minute cross, but Ollie Watkins tapped in the equaliser after Marcus Rashford‘s free-kick hit the bar in the 69th minute.

Kevin Schade’s fourth-minute goal clinched Brentford’s 1-0 win at West Ham.

Liverpool boss Arne Slot has been charged with being abusive to match officials during Wednesday’s stormy Merseyside derby at Everton. Slot was shown a red card after approaching referee Michael Oliver in a heated scene on the pitch at the final whistle after the 2-2 draw. Liverpool were furious that James Tarkowski‘s stoppage-time equaliser was not disallowed because of an alleged push by Toffees striker Beto on Reds defender Ibrahima Konate.

Slot’s assistant Sipke Hulshoff was also dismissed during the row with Oliver in the last Merseyside derby at Goodison Park before Everton move to a new stadium next season.

According to the Football Association, Slot allegedly acted in “an improper manner and/or used insulting and/or abusive words and/or behaviour towards both the match referee and an assistant referee after the match had finished”.

Liverpool midfielder Curtis Jones and Everton’s Abdoulaye Doucoure were also sent off after the final whistle, with Jones angrily pushing Doucoure after he celebrated in front of Reds fans.

Both clubs have also been charged with “their players and/or technical area occupants behaving in an improper and/or provocative way following the final whistle”.

Slot, Hulshoff, Liverpool and Everton have until Wednesday to provide their respective responses, which means the Reds boss will be available to sit on the bench for the Premier League leaders’ game against Wolves at Anfield on Sunday.

Earlier on Friday, Slot accepted he made a mistake with his behaviour because he got caught up in the hostile atmosphere at Goodison Park.

“Emotions got the better of me. If I could do that differently, if I look back I would love to do that differently and I hope to do that differently next time,” he told reporters.

“I should have acted differently after the game but it’s an emotional sport and sometimes individuals make wrong decisions and that’s definitely what I did.”

Everton manager David Moyes said on Friday he had respect for Slot’s fiery actions as he was fighting to protect his team.

“I feel a bit for Arne Slot. When I was a younger manager I was always getting involved in heated things,” he said.

“And it also tells me that he cares a lot about his club and he’s fighting for his players. I think when you get a bit older you stand back and you say, ‘What was I doing there?’

“I’ve had plenty of moments and lots that I’m not proud of. But we all have to fight our own corner.”

James Tarkowski struck in the 98th minute to salvage a 2-2 draw for Everton against Liverpool as four red cards were issued after full-time on a dramatic final Merseyside derby at Goodison Park on Wednesday. Liverpool edge seven points clear at the top of the Premier League but were denied a vital win by Tarkowski’s blistering strike after Mohamed Salah put Arne Slot’s men in front. Everton’s Abdoulaye Doucoure, Liverpool midfielder Curtis Jones, Slot and his assistant Sipke Hulshoff were then sent off as tempers flared at the final whistle on a night Liverpool will come to regret if they do not go on to lift a record-equalling 20th English top flight title.

“Very tough,” said Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk. “We saw the celebrations they had in the end so we know how much it meant for them but the fact is it was disappointing for us.”

Everton are set to move to a new 53,000 capacity stadium in Liverpool’s Bramley Moore Dock next season and gave their home since 1892 a night to remember against their local rivals.

“Mental probably sums it up,” said Everton boss David Moyes. “A brilliant finish for us, to finish the last Goodison Merseyside derby and score in the last minute is in a way fitting.”

Liverpool’s quest for a quadruple came unstuck with a shock FA Cup exit to second-tier strugglers Plymouth on Sunday.

Slot made 10 changes as he resorted to his strongest available side with Salah and Van Dijk among those who had been afforded the weekend off.

Everton’s own FA Cup exit to Bournemouth on Saturday had punctured some of their momentum since Moyes’ return for a second spell in charge.

The Toffees had won their previous three Premier League games to pull nine points clear of the relegation zone and got off to a flying start.

Liverpool were caught napping on 11 minutes by a quick free-kick by Jarrad Branthwaite to free Beto, who beat Alisson Becker for his third goal in two league games.

The visitors could have been swept away in the feverish atmosphere early on but the Reds immediate response was the making of champions.

Alexis Mac Allister started and finished the move as the diminutive Argentine midfielder ghosted into the penalty area to head in Salah’s teasing cross.

Salah strikes

Everton then suffered a huge blow as their creative hub Iliman Ndiaye limped off in tears after a long stoppage.

The first half never recovered its flow amid a flurry of fouls and yellow cards as the Premier League fixture with the most red cards in history threatened to boil over once more.

The home crowd briefly erupted once more when Branthwaite fired home only for the celebrations to be cut short by the offside flag.

Slot was growing visibly frustrated with his side’s lack of penetration going forward and turned to his bench for an impact with Trent Alexander-Arnold, Jones and Darwin Nunez sent on to find a winner.

The changes worked as Salah delivered what looked like a potential title-clinching moment.

Jones and Nunez exchanged a one-two and when the former’s shot was blocked by Branthwaite, it fell kindly for Salah to prod in his 27th goal of the season.

Only a brilliant save by Jordan Pickford crucially denied Salah a second late on.

And Everton rallied when Liverpool failed to deal with a hopeful ball into the box and it fell to centre-back Tarkowski to fire into the top corner.

A lengthy VAR check followed for offside and Everton fans had to be cleared off the pitch before the game could restart.

When it did there was more fireworks as Doucoure and Jones were both shown sent off clashing after the Everton midfielder celebrated in front of the travelling Liverpool support.

Slot and Hulshoff also saw reds for taking their protests towards referee Michael Oliver too far after the game.

Mohamed Salah scored twice to take Liverpool nine points clear at the top of the Premier League by beating Bournemouth 2-0 on Saturday, while third-placed Nottingham Forest smashed Brighton 7-0. Salah’s double took him above Frank Lampard as the sixth highest goalscorer in Premier League history with 178 goals on another significant day in the Reds’ charge towards a record-equalling 20th English top-flight title. Bournemouth had not lost in 12 games in all competitions and beaten Arsenal and Manchester City at home earlier this season.

The Cherries can count themselves unfortunate not to have extended that run as they hit the woodwork either side of half-time through Antoine Semenyo and Marcus Tavernier.

Bournemouth were also furious over the awarding of a penalty that opened the scoring on the half hour mark as Cody Gakpo appeared to clip his own heels as he entered the box rather than being tripped by Lewis Cook.

VAR did not intervene to overturn referee Darren England’s original decision to point to the spot and Salah ruthlessly rifled home the resulting spot-kick for his 20th Premier League goal of the season.

Bournemouth pressed in vain for an equaliser after the break as the in-form Justin Kluivert missed two big chances either side of Tavernier’s strike off the post.

But one moment of magic from Salah sealed a massive three points in the title race when he cut inside onto his favoured left foot and curled into the top corner.

Second-placed Arsenal have a mountain to climb if they are to rein in Arne Slot’s men and host defending champions Manchester City on Sunday.

Forest land a punch

Forest moved level on points with the Gunners thanks to a scintillating performance that blew Brighton away at the City Ground.

Nuno Espirito Santo’s men had been beaten 5-0 by Bournemouth last weekend but bounced back in style with Chris Wood netting a hat-trick.

Morgan Gibbs-White, Neco Williams and Jota Silva were also on target for Forest after Lewis Dunk‘s own goal opened the floodgates.

“After what happened last week, the answer was good,” said Forest boss Nuno Espirito Santo. “You get punched, you get up – fantastic!”

The two-time European champions are on course for a return to the Champions League for the first time since 1980 as they opened up a six-point cushion on fifth-placed Newcastle, who blew the lead to lose 2-1 at home to Fulham.

Jacob Murphy put the Magpies in front at St. James’ Park, but Fulham hit back thanks to goals from Raul Jimenez and Rodrigo Muniz to climb up to ninth and within four points of the top six.

Everton’s relegation fears in their final season at Goodison Park now appear over after thrashing Leicester 4-0.

Abdoulaye Doucoure opened the scoring after just 10 seconds as David Moyes enjoyed a third win in his first four games since returning as Everton boss.

Beto then took advantage of some woeful Leicester defending to score twice before half-time and Iliman Ndiaye rounded off a resounding win in stoppage time.

The Toffees are now 10 points clear of the bottom three.

By contrast, Ipswich look doomed after Southampton ended their wait for a league win since November with a 2-1 victory at Portman Road.

Paul Onuachu scored the winner three minutes from time for Saints, who are still eight points adrift of safety, but move to with seven of Ipswich.

Manchester City face the stiffest test of their recent revival when they travel to Arsenal this weekend as Bournemouth seek to take down Premier League leaders Liverpool. Third-placed Nottingham Forest host Brighton hoping to banish memories of last week’s 5-0 hammering at Bournemouth, while slumping Tottenham aim to stop the rot at Brentford. Let’s take a look at some of the major talking points ahead of the action.

Man City’s litmus test

Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City have won four of their past five Premier League games to climb back into the top four after a miserable run of results.

In midweek they survived a huge scare against Club Brugge to scrape into the Champions League play-off round, further evidence that they may have turned a corner at last.

So is it back to business as usual for the four-time defending Premier League champions?

The fixture list has been relatively kind in recent weeks but they now have a daunting run, with a trip to Arsenal followed by games against Newcastle, Liverpool, Tottenham and Nottingham Forest.

Their prize for survival in the Champions League is a tough play-off against either Real Madrid or Bayern Munich.

Mikel Arteta‘s Gunners are unbeaten in 14 league games at home since a 2-0 defeat by Aston Villa last April and cannot afford to drop points as they hunt down Liverpool.

Second-placed Arsenal have been pipped to the title by City in each of the past two seasons, but will kick off six points above their old rivals, determined to state their credentials as serious challengers.

Tottenham: Too good to go down?

Despite Tottenham’s plunge down the table, relegation talk has appeared fanciful, with an eight-point buffer between themselves and the bottom three.

But when will Ange Postecoglou’s injury-hit team turn their form around?

Fellow strugglers Everton and Leicester both closed the gap on Spurs last weekend.

The slide has been dramatic for Postecoglou’s men. In late November, Tottenham were sixth and just four points off second place. Since then, they have slumped to 15th, 23 points off second.

They have taken just four points from their past 10 games — only Southampton (one) have taken fewer.

It is still difficult to imagine that enough of the teams below Tottenham have the quality to reel them in but they are alarmingly fragile.

On Sunday, they travel across London to face mid-table Brentford, who boast an impressive home record and significant firepower.

If they do not start winning again soon, fans will start to think the unthinkable.

Bournemouth’s push for Europe

At the start of the season, a trip to Bournemouth’s modest Vitality Stadium would not have given Liverpool manager Arne Slot sleepless nights but it is a different story now.

Andoni Iraola‘s team are unbeaten in their past 11 Premier League games, their longest run without defeat in the competition. 

The Spaniard, in his second season at the club, has done a remarkable job despite missing a host of players through injury including Marcos Senesi, Marcus Tavernier, Luis Sinisterra, Evanilson and Enes Unal.

Iraola’s free-scoring side are seventh in the table but are just a single point behind fourth-placed Manchester City as their fans dream of European football next season.

Justin Kluivert, on 11 Premier League goals, is emerging from the shadow of his father, Netherlands star Patrick Kluivert, while Dango Ouattara scored a hat-trick in the 5-0 demolition of Nottingham Forest last weekend.

Bournemouth have already beaten Arsenal and Manchester City this season but Liverpool, who have lost just once in the league, would be their biggest scalp so far.

Fixtures

Saturday (1500 GMT unless stated)

Nottingham Forest v Brighton (1230), Bournemouth v Liverpool, Everton v Leicester, Ipswich v Southampton, Newcastle v Fulham, Wolves v Aston Villa (1730)

Sunday (1400 unless stated)

Brentford v Tottenham, Manchester United v Crystal Palace, Arsenal v Manchester City (1630)

Monday 

Chelsea v West Ham (2000)

Cody Gakpo struck twice as Premier League leaders Liverpool thrashed Ipswich 4-1 to maintain their six-point lead over Arsenal, who survived Myles Lewis-Skelly’s controversial red card to snatch a 1-0 win at Wolves in the Premier League on Saturday. Troubled champions Manchester City recovered from Abdukodir Khusanov’s debut disaster to move into fourth place with a vital 3-1 win against top four rivals Chelsea. At Anfield, Liverpool cruised to their second successive league victory thanks to a first half goal-spree.

Dominik Szoboszlai‘s 11th-minute opener fizzed past Ipswich goalkeeper Christian Walton from Ibrahima Konate’s assist.

Mohamed Salah doubled Liverpool’s advantage in the 35th minute with a fierce strike for his 23rd goal in all competitions this term.

It was also the Egypt forward’s 100th Premier League goal at Anfield.

Gakpo killed off Ipswich before half-time when he bundled home after Walton parried Szoboszlai’s shot in the 44th minute.

The Dutch forward netted again in the 66th minute, heading past Walton from Trent Alexander-Arnold‘s cross.

Jacob Greaves’ stoppage-time diving header was little consolation for third-bottom Ipswich.

Liverpool’s 16th win from 22 league games this season keeps them on course for a first English title since 2020.

“I think about how can I make sure these players play in a style I would love them to play. And they have done that from the start. It’s a joy to watch,” Liverpool boss Arne Slot said.

The quadruple-chasing Reds have a game in hand on second-placed Arsenal, who left it late before keeping the pressure on the leaders.

Arsenal had Lewis-Skelly contentiously sent off for tripping Matt Doherty to stop a Wolves counter-attack in the 43rd minute.

Arsenal were furious, protesting that the 18-year-old defender’s tackle was too far from goal to warrant a red card.

But Wolves were also reduced t0 10 men in the 70th minute when Joao Gomes earned a second booking for a foul on Jurrien Timber.

And Italy defender Riccardo Calafiori won it for Arsenal in the 74th minute with a half-volley that went in off the far post.

‘Difficult to accept’

“It’s obvious that it was very difficult to accept. I leave it to you guys because it’s that obvious. You don’t need my words. It was so obvious,” Arteta told reporters of Lewis-Skelly’s dismissal.

At the Etihad Stadium, Uzbekistan defender Khusanov, signed from Lens as part of struggling City’s January overhaul, made a woeful start when his miscued header allowed Noni Madueke to give Chelsea a second minute lead.

But City, who also gave a debut to Egypt forward Omar Marmoush after his move from Eintracht Frankfurt, hit back to equalise with Josko Gvardiol‘s 42nd minute strike.

Erling Haaland chipped out of position Chelsea keeper Robert Sanchez to put City ahead in the 68th minute.

Phil Foden sprinted clear to score his sixth goal in his last four league games in the 87th minute as Pep Guardiola’s side climbed one point above sixth-placed Chelsea.

It was a much-needed win for City, who suffered a damaging loss at Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday and must beat Club Brugge next week to have a chance of reaching the Champions League play-off round.

“Not the best start but we recovered emotionally and made a good performance,” Guardiola said.

“Any player can make a mistake. Khusanov’s so young. He will learn. The players were together. That was massively important.”

Dango Ouattara hit a hat-trick as Bournemouth dented Nottingham Forest’s top four charge with a 5-0 demolition at the Vitality Stadium.

Andoni Iraola‘s side are undefeated in their last 11 league games and up to seventh place after ending third-placed Forest’s own impressive run of eight top-flight matches without losing.

Justin Kluivert bagged Bournemouth’s opener and Ouattara completed a memorable treble before Antoine Semenyo sealed the Cherries’ biggest victory this season.

Alexander Isak starred as fifth-placed Newcastle won 3-1 at bottom of the table Southampton.

Jan Bednarek put Southampton ahead but in-form Isak struck twice before Sandro Tonali scored Newcastle’s third.

Everton boss David Moyes celebrated becoming the third manager to reach 700 Premier League games with a 1-0 win at Brighton secured by Iliman Ndiaye’s 42nd minute penalty.

Cody Gakpo scored twice as Liverpool took another step towards the Premier League title with a 4-1 demolition of Ipswich at Anfield on Saturday. Dominik Szoboszlai and Mohamed Salah were also on target in a dominant performance from the Reds, who remain six points clear of Arsenal having played a game less. Just a second league title in 35 years and a 20th overall to match Manchester United’s English record now seems just a matter of time in Arne Slot’s first season in charge.

The Dutchman was able to make five changes from Tuesday’s 2-1 win over Lille that also secured direct passage to the last 16 of the Champions League in a sparkling season for the six-time European champions.

By contrast, Ipswich are finding the step up to the Premier League a bridge too far after back-to-back promotions.

Kieran McKenna’s men were thrashed 6-0 at home by Manchester City last weekend and could easily have suffered the same margin or more on their first trip to Anfield since 2002.

Slot has been keen for Szoboszlai to up his scoring contribution from midfield and the Hungarian led the way with a fine low strike for his fourth goal of the campaign after just 11 minutes.

Salah had been made to wait to usurp Thierry Henry as the Premier League’s seventh highest goalscorer of all time after blanking away at Nottingham Forest and Brentford.

The Egyptian made sure normal service was resumed by firing in high from Gakpo’s cross for his 176th Premier League goal and 19th of the season to move two clear of Erling Haaland and Alexander Isak in the race for the golden boot.

Szoboszlai’s forward runs were a constant threat for the Ipswich defence and the source of the third goal as Gakpo turned home the rebound after Christian Walton saved the midfielder’s initial effort.

Liverpool unsurprisingly eased off in the second half amid a gruelling schedule as they remain in the hunt for four competitions.

Gakpo headed in Trent Alexander-Arnold‘s inviting cross for his 14th goal of the season.

Ipswich did at least get a consolation in the final minute when Jacob Greaves headed in from Julio Enciso’s corner.

However, the real test of their survival hopes comes next weekend when bottom-of-the-table Southampton visit Portman Road in a must-win clash for the Tractor Boys.

Ipswich remain in the relegation zone but only on goal difference behind Wolves, who blew a man advantage for half an hour of their 1-0 defeat to Arsenal.

Darwin Nunez struck twice in stoppage time to earn Liverpool a 2-0 win at Brentford and open up a seven-point Premier League lead on Saturday after Bournemouth ran riot in a 4-1 win at Newcastle. The Reds looked set to drop points for the third consecutive league game until the much-maligned Uruguayan doubled his tally of Premier League goals for the season in the dying seconds in west London. Nunez swept home Trent Alexander-Arnold‘s cross before smashing in a second for a vital twist in the title race.

Instead of cutting the gap, Arsenal are now under pressure to keep pace when they host Aston Villa in the 1730GMT kick-off.

Liverpool had been wasteful in front of goal in a 1-1 draw at Nottingham Forest in midweek and Arne Slot’s men nearly let another two points slip away.

Dominik Szoboszlai smashed a shot off the bar and Cody Gakpo failed to hit the target with a glorious chance to open the scoring before half-time.

On a rare quiet day for Mohamed Salah, Slot was forced to turn to Nunez to make an impact off the bench and he duly delivered.

The 25-year-old had not scored in the league since November but was in the right place to finish after a neat one-two between Harvey Elliott and Alexander-Arnold.

Substitute Elliott was the creator for the second, feeding Nunez to cut inside and fire past Mark Flekken.

Kluivert bursts Newcastle bubble

Bournemouth snapped Newcastle’s winning streak in stunning fashion as Justin Kluivert’s hat-trick fired the Cherries up to sixth.

The Magpies were looking to set a club record with a 10th consecutive victory in all competitions but were thoroughly outplayed by the visitors, who are themselves now on an 11-game unbeaten streak.

Kluivert, son of former Newcastle striker Patrick Kluivert, scored a hat-trick of penalties earlier this season at Wolves.

This time all three of his crisp finishes came from open play as Bournemouth were rampant at St. James’ Park.

Milos Kerkez added a fourth in stoppage time as Andoni Iraola‘s men closed to within one point of fourth-placed Newcastle.

Bournemouth have never qualified for European competition before and Kluivert said that is the goal for an ambitious squad.

“Why not dream big and let’s see where we can end up,” said the Dutch international.

Leicester have lost seven consecutive Premier League games as a 2-0 home defeat to Fulham edged Ruud van Nistelrooy’s men closer to a return to the Championship.

Emile Smith Rowe and Adama Traore were on target for the visitors, who move up to ninth.

Crystal Palace are up to 12th after a third win in four games thanks to Jean-Philippe Mateta’s double in a 2-0 win at 10-man West Ham.

Mateta opened the scoring early in the second half before Konstantinos Mavropanos’ red card gave the Hammers a mountain to climb.

The Frenchman then sealed the points from the penalty spot late on.