Man City moves closer to title; Chelsea held in top-4 bid
(Adam Davy/Pool via AP)LONDON – Manchester City only needs to win five of its remaining eight games to secure the Premier League trophy. Sergio Aguero then fired the ball into the corner of the goal for his first Premier League goal in 14 months. "We want to still fight for the position in Europe.”TUCHEL UNBEATENChelsea extended its unbeaten start under Thomas Tuchel to 10 Premier League games with the draw at Leeds. ZAHA STANCEWilfried Zaha became the first Premier League player not to take a knee before his Crystal Palace team beat West Bromwich Albion 1-0. Zaha had already indicated that he thought taking a knee has lost meaning after being brought in by the Premier League in June as an anti-racism message when football resumed.
Spurs beat Arsenal to stay top, fans return to Anfield
Liverpool fans applaud during the English Premier League soccer match between Liverpool and Wolverhampton Wanderers at Anfield Stadium, Liverpool, England, Sunday, Dec. 6, 2020. (Peter Powell/Pool via AP)LONDON – Fans of Premier League title challengers Liverpool and Tottenham had waited since March to watch their teams win from the stands. Spurs supporters — a maximum of 2,000 under coronavirus restrictions, and no away fans — were treated to a 2-0 win over fierce north London rival Arsenal. It was the first Tottenham home game since fans were allowed back in stadiums in England. Liverpool responded with a 4-0 win over Wolverhampton to stay level with league leader Tottenham on points.
'It's really crazy': Late goals cap another wild day in EPL
(AP photo/Matt Dunham, Pool)A two-week break for international matches has done nothing to suppress the relentless unpredictability of this season’s Premier League. No team had previously avoided defeat when 3-0 down as late as the 81st minute in the Premier League. “It’s really crazy at the moment,” said West Ham midfielder Declan Rice, who added that the feeling after Lanzini’s last-gasp strike was one of the best he has had in his career. Spurs were leading 3-0 at the time, thanks to goals by Son Heung-min and Harry Kane (2) in the opening 16 minutes. Palace had just one shot all match, and that was the contentiously awarded penalty converted by Wilfried Zaha in the 19th minute.
Disjointed and overrun, Man Utd slumps to loss on EPL return
(Richard Heathcote/Pool via AP)Manchester United began its Premier League campaign with a performance as disjointed as its offseason. Maybe the 3-1 home loss to Crystal Palace on Saturday shouldn’t really have come as a surprise. After all, United only ended a pandemic-prolonged 2019-20 season 33 days ago with a demoralizing loss to Sevilla in the Europa League semifinals. “We knew Manchester United didn’t play last week and that we had the mental advantage,” Palace winger Andros Townsend said. On a day when 21 goals were scored in four games, there were also wins for Everton, Leeds and Arsenal.
Liverpool wins wild opener vs Leeds in EPL title defense
Leeds United's head coach Marcelo Bielsa calls out to his players during the English Premier League soccer match between Liverpool and Leeds United, at the Anfield stadium, in Liverpool, Saturday, Sept. 12, 2020. Bielsa’s first English Premier League game as a manager was barely a half-hour old and already there’d been five goals, countless chances and furious, end-to-end drama. Back in the top division after a 16-year absence, Leeds is certainly going to be a fun watch under the Argentine coaching great this season. “It was eventful,” Liverpool defender Virgil van Dijk said with a smile, summing up a chaotic match. It was much more straightforward for Arsenal against another promoted team as the Premier League started a month later than scheduled due to the pandemic that is still preventing fans from attending games.
Boy, 12, arrested after Palace player Zaha gets racist posts
Crystal Palace's Wilfried Zaha takes a knee in support of the Black Lives Matter movement before the English Premier League soccer match between Aston Villa and Crystal Palace at Villa Park in Birmingham, England, Sunday, July 12, 2020. (Tim Keeton/Pool Photo via AP)LONDON A 12-year-old boy was arrested by police after Crystal Palace player Wilfried Zaha highlighted racist abuse he received ahead of Sunday's Premier League match at Aston Villa. The Premier League has launched a reporting system to allow players to report abuse that can be followed up by authorities. This behavior is completely unacceptable and the Premier League stands alongside Wilfried Zaha in opposing this, and discrimination in any form," the league said in a statement. We will continue to support players, managers, coaches and their family members who receive serious discriminatory online abuse."