Liverpool on Wednesday extended their lead at the top of the Premier League to 13 points after a 2-0 victory over Newcastle United.
Liverpool took full advantage as second-placed Arsenal dropped more points in a 0-0 draw with Nottingham Forest.
Dominik Szoboszlai scored in the 11th minute and Alexis Mac Allister netted just past the hour mark at Anfield to secure a 20th league win of the season from 28 games.
Photo: Reuters
Title success would see Liverpool equal Manchester United’s record haul of 20.
It all seems so easy for Liverpool right now. With their rivals faltering one by one, the Merseyside team keep edging closer to the title.
Not even the absence of coach Arne Slot from the sideline after he was handed a two-match suspension could halt his team’s progress.
Photo: AP
A goalless draw with Nottingham Forest highlighted Arsenal’s problems amid an injury crisis in attack, with the Londoners failing to score for the third time in four games.
Arsenal were linked with a move for Aston Villa’s OIlie Watkins at the end of the window, but ended up empty-handed. It looks like that will be the case in terms of their title pursuit after the draw saw them slip further adrift of Liverpool.
“We played well and were dominant through the whole games, but goals happen in the boxes,” Arsenal’s Leandro Trossard said. “We defended well, but up top we need to try and create more.”
Manchester City moved back up to fourth after Erling Haaland returned from a knee injury and scored in their 1-0 win against Tottenham Hotspur.
Ten-man Manchester United were given a scare by relegation-fighting Ipswich Town.
Trailing inside four minutes at Old Trafford after Jaden Philogene’s early goal, United bounced back to win 3-2, despite Patrick Dorgu’s red card in the 43rd minute.
Manchester United moved up to 14th — ahead of Everton, who drew 1-1 against Brentford.
Copa del Rey
AP
Kylian Mbappe’s replacement Endrick on Wednesday scored a first-half goal as Real Madrid won 1-0 against Real Sociedad in the first leg of their Copa del Rey semi-final.
Madrid were without Mbappe after he had tooth removed and was forced to miss practice on Tuesday. The France star has scored six goals in his past five matches.
Endrick, an 18-year-old Brazil forward, scored in a breakaway after Jude Bellingham’s long pass.
“Endrick has helped us a lot,” Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti said. “His goal was fantastic. He worked well up front and on defense as well. The team has been playing well.”
Coppa Italia
Reuters
Empoli on Wednesday knocked Juventus out of the Coppa Italia with a dramatic 4-2 penalty shoot-out win after a 1-1 draw in regular-time, leaving coach Thiago Motta ashamed by the Bianconeri’s shock exit.
Empoli initially led with a first-half goal by Youssef Maleh, while Juventus struggled to pose any serious threat before the interval, prompting Motta to criticize his side’s performance and urging his players to take responsibility.
“Shame. I feel shame for what we saw in the first half and I hope my players feel the same,” Motta told a news conference. “The attitude was shameful. Maybe I am wrong because I did not make the players understand the importance of this game and the importance of wearing the Juventus shirt. We made a mistake and that’s why we’re not in the semi-finals.”
After Khephren Thuram equalized for Juventus in the second half, the match went to penalties where Empoli emerged victorious 4-2.
Coupe de France
AP, PARIS
USL Dunkerque on Wednesday showed their fighting spirit once again, rallying from 2-0 down to win 3-2 against top-flight Stade Brestois 29 and reach the Coupe de France semi-finals.
The second-tier side had already knocked out Ligue 1 high-fliers Lille OSC in the previous round on penalty kicks after equalizing six minutes into stoppage-time in that game.
Holders Paris Saint-Germain romped to a 7-0 win against fourth-tier Stade Briochin in Wednesday’s other quarter-final, with striker Goncalo Ramos grabbing a hat-trick.
DFB-Pokal
AP, LEIPZIG, Germany
Benjamin Sesko’s penalty on Wednesday was enough for RB Leipzig to book the last semi-final spot in the DFB-Pokal with a 1-0 win over VfL Wolfsburg.
Leipzig, who won the competition in 2023, joined third-tier Arminia Bielefeld, VfB Stuttgart and defending champions Bayer 04 Leverkusen in the last four.
‘AWFUL PERFORMANCE’: Golden State were always chasing the game after failing to threaten from long range, making just eight of 33 three-point attempts Aaron Gordon on Monday scored 38 points as the Denver Nuggets shrugged off the absence of Nikola Jokic to halt the Golden State Warriors’ seven-game winning streak with a 114-105 victory over their Western Conference rivals. A dazzling display from Gordon inspired what was ultimately a comfortable win for Denver, who were missing regular starters Jokic and Jamal Murray from their lineup. The absentees were barely felt by Denver, who startled the Warriors early at San Francisco’s Chase Center and led for most of the game. The Warriors threatened to stage a late rally after slashing the Nuggets’ fourth-quarter lead from 15 points
Barcelona’s Ferran Torres scored twice on Sunday to help secure a late 4-2 comeback win at Atletico Madrid in a pulsating La Liga clash that took the Catalan side back to the top of the table. Barca have 60 points and a game in hand after last week’s postponement of their home game with CA Osasuna. They are level on points with Real Madrid, who won 2-1 at Villarreal on Saturday. “I am happy and proud of this team,” Barcelona head coach Hansi Flick told a news conference. “They never give up... It’s a great three points and we are happy to
Paolo Banchero on Sunday scored 24 points as the Orlando Magic overturned a 13-point deficit to end the Cleveland Cavaliers’ 16-game unbeaten streak with a gutsy 108-103 road victory. Cleveland, the runaway Eastern Conference leaders, had looked poised to extend their franchise-record winning run after surging clear of Orlando early in the third quarter, but after a season where they have staged hefty winning comebacks of their own, the tables turned on Cleveland in the face of a furious burst of Orlando scoring. The Magic outscored Cleveland 35-23 in the third quarter, with Franz Wagner leading the charge with nine points and
Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday held their nerve to beat Liverpool 4-1 on penalties and reach the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals after their tie finished one-apiece on aggregate, while Bayern Munich saw off Bayer 04 Leverkusen to complete a 5-0 win over both legs. Lamine Yamal and Raphinha fired Barcelona into the next round as the Catalans bested SL Benfica 3-1, and Inter booked a last-eight meeting with Bayern by seeing off Feyenoord 2-1. At Anfield, Ousmane Dembele netted the only goal of the night as PSG bounced back from Liverpool’s late winner last week to force the tie to extra-time and penalties. Maligned
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