Blog – The Match – Page 6

Liverpool’s incredible title quest now rests in the hands of archrivals Man United

A Georginio Wijnaldum volley and James Milner penalty gave Liverpool the win they needed to stay ahead of Manchester City in the table.

Alexis Nunes and Paul Mariner share their thoughts on Liverpool’s win over Cardiff which keeps the Reds on top ahead of Man City’s derby match.

CARDIFF, Wales — Liverpool have done their bit, but if Jurgen Klopp’s team are to end the club’s 29-year wait to become champions of England again, they now really need a favour from their biggest rivals. And therein lies the crucial weakness in Liverpool’s title ambitions: their hopes and dreams lie in the hands of a listless Manchester United.

A team requires many elements to become Premier League champions, and considering Liverpool are on course to end this season with 97 points, there…

Man United’s abject defeat at Everton club’s worst day since Ferguson’s retirement

Manchester United were run off the pitch at Goodison Park in a rout by Everton that keeps Ole Gunnar Solsjkaer’s side stuck outside the top four.

Paul Mariner examines the task Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has to rebuild Manchester United in the summer after their 4-0 defeat at Everton.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer apologises to Manchester United’s fans after their loss at Everton, saying only they were fit to wear the badge at Goodison.

LIVERPOOL, England — There have been some shocking Manchester United performances since Sir Alex Ferguson retired six years ago. It is a list that includes Olympiakos, Manchester City and Liverpool in 2014, Wolfsburg and Stoke in 2015, and Brighton, Tottenham, West Ham and Liverpool in 2018. You can now add Everton away in 2019.

It is a crowded field, but the dismal display at Goodison Park was as bad as it’s been since Fergie waved goodbye. Easter Sunday at Everton marked the end for David…

Phil Foden can offset Kevin De Bruyne’s absence for Man City

Phil Foden’s goal was the difference versus Tottenham as Man City remain in control of their Premier League title destiny.

Shaka Hislop wasn’t too impressed by Manchester City’s win over Tottenham but says they have proven they can hold off Liverpool in the title race.

Bernardo Silva sets his sights on the remaining Premier League fixtures as Manchester City stay on course for the title by beating Tottenham.
Premier League champions sometimes need goals from unlikely sources. Granted, they will usually have a striker trying to win a golden boot and a prolific attacking midfielder in the running for player of the year honours, but contributions can also come from less obvious sources, who choose the perfect moment to score their first goal in the English top flight.
There was Christopher Wreh for Arsenal in 1998, who netted for the first time in a Premier League game to secure a win against Wimbledon;…

Liverpool show again they can win ‘by any means necessary’ to set up a showdown with Barcelona

PORTO, Portugal — If the apocalypse comes and all life is wiped out, Liverpool will be right there next to the cockroaches.

They’re the side that won’t go away. The side that in the space of a year has turned from a reckless teenager into a furrowed-brow 30-something, from a side just as liable to blow teams away as explode, into one that wins by any means necessary, grinding out results where you didn’t think them possible.

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A 4-1 win at Porto might sound like the sort of freewheeling performance…

Seven goals and VAR drama as Tottenham stun City. Was this greatest UCL game ever?

MANCHESTER, England — It was Pep Guardiola’s Jose Mourinho moment. A late, dramatic winner in a Champions League tie, followed by the victorious manager sprinting down the touchline to celebrate wildly with his players.

But then, in the flash of a video screen, it wasn’t.

The Etihad Stadium went from raucous noise to mournful silence as Raheem Sterling’s 93rd-minute hat-trick goal, Manchester City’s fifth on the night, was ruled out — correctly — following a VAR review that ruled that Sergio…

Spurs advance in classic European night as Man City’s Quadruple dream ends

But then, in the flash of a video screen, it wasn’t.

Ajax’s ideals triumph over riches of Juventus and Cristiano Ronaldo

TURIN, Italy — It turns out Cristiano Ronaldo is not enough. The Portuguese scored in both legs of Juventus’ Champions League quarterfinal against Ajax. He put the Bianconeri in front at the Allianz Stadium on Tuesday. They wouldn’t even be here without his face-saving hat trick against Atletico Madrid in the round of 16. The 34-year-old kept up his side of the bargain. Ultimately, though, Juventus came up short.

What Ajax have achieved is stunning. As Erik ten Hag noted on the eve of the game,…

Messi’s genius is enough for Barcelona to win the Champions League

BARCELONA, Spain — It is six years since a team without Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo won the Champions League and, if you conducted a straw poll of the Manchester United team torn apart by Barcelona’s magician in the Nou Camp during a 3-0 quarterfinal second-leg defeat Tuesday night, few responses would suggest the sequence will end this season.
Ronaldo, courtesy of Ajax’s stunning victory against Juventus, will not be in Madrid for the final June 1, but Messi, who netted twice in four minutes…

Unai Emery, Arsenal need to settle on a ‘Plan A’ and identity to progress forward

Arsenal secured their first clean sheet away from home this Premier League season and soared back into the top four with a 1-0 win over 10-man Watford.

ESPN FC’s Craig Burley delves into Arsenal’s poor form on the road this season, after narrowly escaping 10-man Watford with three points.

On the face of it, this was an excellent night for Arsenal — three points, back into the top four, and at long last, a clean sheet away from home.

But this was a hugely disappointing performance, especially when Arsenal’s two matchwinners here were actually opposition players. Ben Foster’s dawdling when attempting to clear a back pass resulted in him thumping the ball against Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and into his own net for the lone goal. Moments later, Watford captain Troy Deeney needlessly…

If Liverpool go on to win the Premier League, Salah’s goal to beat Chelsea will be the defining strike

Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah scored in Liverpool’s dominant victory over Chelsea, moving the Reds back ahead of Manchester City.

ESPN FC’s Craig Burley breaks down what Sunday’s Premier League results mean for Liverpool and Manchester City in the title race.

LIVERPOOL, England — There have been some special goals that have gone on to define a title-winning campaign, and only time will tell whether Mohamed Salah’s unstoppable left-foot strike for Liverpool against Chelsea earns its place alongside those scored by the likes of Eric Cantona, Sergio Aguero and Robin van Persie during the Premier League era. But on a day that felt like being a momentous one in the race for the title before a ball had even been kicked, Salah’s goal, which sealed a 2-0 Anfield…

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