Chelsea’s new signing, Gonzalo Higuain, netted his first two Premier League goals in their 5-0 thrashing of Huddersfield Town, while Tottenham Hotspur’s Son Heung-min struck late for a 1-0 win over Newcastle United as they moved into second place.
Wolverhampton Wanderers won 3-1 at Everton on a day when most of the top teams did not play, while at the bottom, Fulham lost 2-0 at Crystal Palace, Burnley drew 1-1 with Southampton, and Brighton & Hove Albion and Watford were goalless.
Goals were never an issue at Chelsea where their new loan signing gave a quick display of his potency.
Photo: AFP
First, Higuain made space in the area to fire home from a tight angle after 16 minutes and then produced a shot that deflected past the goalkeeper in the 67th minute.
With Eden Hazard also scoring twice and David Luiz adding the fifth, Chelsea gave the perfect response to their 4-0 midweek drubbing at AFC Bournemouth, which had piled pressure on coach Maurizio Sarri.
“We try to work with each other. Higuain is a new player, but he knows what the manager wants. He is a great striker and he can score a lot of goals,” Hazard said.
Spurs are making a habit of scoring late winners with Son, who also got the equalizer against Watford in midweek, bagging their third in successive league games to take them above Manchester City by a point and within four of Liverpool.
Tottenham finally scored in the 81st minute, although Son owed a vote of thanks to Newcastle goalkeeper Martin Dubravka, who somehow allowed a hopeful shot from outside the area to creep under his body.
Wolves’ win at Goodison Park saw them equal their highest tally of 11 victories in a Premier League season, dating back to the 2010-2011 season.
Ruben Neves, Raul Jimenez and Leander Dendoncker scored the goals as Everton’s underwhelming campaign continued.
Wolves’ final goal triggered a bizarre episode when a cat ran on to the pitch, causing a hold-up for several minutes before it was eventually chaperoned out.
Palace’s new loan striker, Michy Batshuayi, made an instant impact off the bench late on, turning and shooting to set up their second goal for Jeffrey Schlupp as Fulham, who remain the only league side still to register an away win, succumbed.
Luka Milivojevic scored Palace’s first from the penalty spot.
At Turf Moor, Ashley Barnes took full advantage of Burnley’s first penalty in 68 games to equalize after Nathan Redmond’s earlier strike, while Brighton’s draw with Watford arrested their slide down the table.
CARDIFF CELEBRATE SALA
Reuters
Cardiff City boss Neil Warnock said that missing striker Emiliano Sala, who is presumed dead following an airplane crash, would have been proud of his team following their 2-0 Premier League win over AFC Bournemouth on Saturday.
Bobby Reid scored early in each half in a game that turned into a celebration of Sala — the club’s record £15 million (US$19.63-million) signing from Ligue 1 club Nantes — who disappeared along with pilot David Ibbotson in a small airplane on Jan. 21.
The Argentinian striker and the pilot are believed to have died after crashing into the sea, and a privately funded search was set to begin yesterday.
The Cardiff players held up a T-shirt bearing the image of the 28-year-old Sala, who never played a game for the club, after Reid rifled home an early penalty to give the relegation-threatened Bluebirds the lead in the fifth minute.
“I know he’s not here today, but Emiliano today, he would have been proud of us,” said Warnock, who had struggled to fight back tears as he applauded the crowd on the pitch after the game.
Fans were handed daffodils as they entered the Cardiff City Stadium and a minute’s silence was observed, with many holding up colored cards to form a mosaic in Sala’s honor.
The players’ tribute after Reid’s fifth-minute penalty was followed in the 28th by a round of applause that swelled around the ground as fans sang out Sala’s name.
Reid added a second goal 15 seconds after the break to put his side two up and seal three valuable points in their battle to avoid relegation, but despite an outstanding performance, they remain third from bottom on 22 points, two behind Burnley.
Bournemouth were a shadow of the side that hammered Chelsea 4-0 in their midweek league clash, and they remain in 10th position in the table on 33 points.
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