Premier League
LIVERPOOL BEAT MANCHESTER UNITED IN SIX-GOAL THRILLER TO BOOST CHANCES OF CHAMPIONS LEAGUE RETURN
Liverpool kept their chances of a place in next season’s Champions League in their own hands with a thrilling 4-2 victory over Manchester United at Old Trafford on Thursday (May 13).
Jurgen Klopp’s men still need to win their remaining three games to guarantee a place in the Premier League’s top four, but cleared the biggest hurdle in their path with a first victory away to United since 2014.
Roberto Firmino scored twice either side of half-time after Diogo Jota cancelled out Bruno Fernandes’s early opener for the home side.
Marcus Rashford’s strike set up a grandstand finish, but Mohamed Salah secured a vital win in the final minute as Liverpool moved up to fifth in the table.
The clash between English football’s two most successful clubs had been postponed 11 days ago as United fans stormed the pitch and clashed with police amid protests against the club’s owners.
A peaceful protest took place before kick-off as supporters again voiced their anger at the Glazer family. Anger towards the Americans has been reignited by United’s part in a failed European Super League (ESL) project, that collapsed within 48 hours last month due to a backlash from fans, players, governments and governing bodies.
United and Liverpool were reportedly two of the leading drivers behind the project that sought to guarantee top level European football for 15 founder members every season without the need to qualify on the pitch.
Both clubs have struggled at times in the past decade to secure the riches of Champions League football via a top-four finish in the Premier League.
United’s place in Europe’s premier club competition next season is assured, although they failed to secure second spot behind Manchester City on Thursday.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer made 10 changes from a 2-1 defeat to Leicester on Tuesday which sealed the title for City. The Norwegian restored the majority of his regular starting line-up for United’s fourth game in seven days, but the presence of Harry Maguire was badly missed with the United captain sidelined by an ankle injury.
In stark contrast to the cagey encounters between these two sides that have become the norm in recent seasons, the early goal sparked a wide open game with chances at either end.
Fernandes’s shot was turned into his own net by Nat Phillips in his desperate attempt to clear on 10 minutes. At the other end, twice Jota was denied an equaliser by Dean Henderson, while Liverpool also had a penalty ruled out by a VAR review for a rash challenge by Eric Bailly on Phillips.
Phillips did make amends for his earlier error in the equaliser as his shot was flicked in by Jota to equalise before Firmino bulleted home Trent Alexander-Arnold’s free-kick to give Liverpool the lead in first-half stoppage time. That was Firmino’s first goal for 16 games and the Brazilian had another two minutes into the second-half with a tap in after Henderson could only spill Alexander-Arnold’s shot.
The visitors should have wrapped up the three points as Jota hit the post with just Henderson to beat. But Liverpool’s defensive problems that have beset their season reappeared in the final quarter.
Rashford halved United’s deficit with an accurate finish from Edinson Cavani’s through ball.
Moments later Phillips had to clear off his own line to deny Mason Greenwood an equaliser. Salah finally eased Liverpool’s nerves in the 90th minute as he sprinted clear to slot home his 30th goal of the season.
The Reds now need victories against West Brom, Burnley and Crystal Palace over the next 10 days to guarantee their place in the Champions League for a fifth consecutive season.
-AFP
Thomas Partey, who formerly played for English Premier League soccer club Arsenal, has been charged with rape and sexual assault, London’s Metropolitan Police said on Friday.
Partey, a Ghana international, was charged with five counts of rape and one count of sexual assault, with the charges relating to three women and the offences reported to have taken place between 2021 and 2022, the statement said.
Partey’s management did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
He is due to appear at London’s Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Aug. 5.
Partey, 32, was signed by Arsenal from Atletico Madrid for 50 million euros ($59 million) in October 2020 and became a key member of Arsenal’s first team.
He was first arrested in July 2022, though he was not named at the time and continued to play for Arsenal while investigations were ongoing.
-Reuters
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Five players including England forward Marcus Rashford and Argentina winger Alejandro Garnacho have informed Manchester United that they wish to explore a future away from the Premier League side, a club source said on Friday.
Brazilian midfielder Antony, Dutch defender Tyrell Malacia and England international Jadon Sancho are also looking to leave the club, the source added.
Rashford, who has made more than 400 senior appearances for United, has fallen out of favour with manager Ruben Amorim, played for Aston Villa on loan while United had their worst-ever Premier League campaign, finishing 15th in the standings.
Amorim had called Rashford’s work rate into question, saying he would rather put a goalkeeper coach on the bench than a player not giving their all.
Rashford said he was feeling fitter and better since joining Villa, where he scored two goals in 10 league appearances.
United also failed to qualify for the Champions League as they lost the Europa League final 1-0 to Tottenham Hotspur. Garnacho, who was a late substitute in the final, voiced his displeasure on social media after the loss.
“Up until the final, I played every round helping the team, and today I play 20 minutes, I don’t know,” he wrote in a post . “The final will influence (my decision), but the whole season, the situation of the club.”
Sancho was on loan at Chelsea, where he made 31 league appearances last season. Antony, who joined United from Ajax Amsterdam in 2022 for a reported initial transfer fee of more than $100 million, scored five goals in 17 LaLiga appearances on loan at Real Betis.
Malacia joined Dutch side PSV Eindhoven on loan in February.
-Reuters
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Manchester United captain Bruno Fernandes turned down the opportunity to join Saudi Pro League side Al-Hilal in order to keep playing “at the highest level”, he said on Tuesday.
The Portuguese midfielder admitted that he had considered the move, which media reports said was worth four times his current salary, after being contacted by Al-Hilal’s president.
“There was that possibility, the president of Al-Hilal called me a month ago to ask me about it,” Fernandes, who is preparing to face Germany with Portugal, told reporters on Tuesday.
“It was a big offer, very ambitious. There was a waiting period for me to think about the future.”
Fernandes ultimately decided to stay at United and said he was motivated by his desire to continue playing at the top level and encouraged by his family and the club’s coach Ruben Amorim.
“I would be willing to do it if Manchester United thought so,” Fernandes added. “I spoke to the coach Ruben Amorim who really tried to talk me out of it. The club said they would not be willing to sell me, only if I wanted to leave.
“I spoke to my wife and family, and she asked me what my personal goals were in my career.
“It would have been easy to move there but I want to keep myself at the highest level, playing in the big competitions and I feel capable of it. I am happy with my decision.”
The 30-year-old Fernandes scored 19 goals and provided 19 assists in 57 appearances across all competitions for United last season, winning the club’s Player of the Year award for the fourth time.
However, it was a season to forget for the team, as they finished 15th in the Premier League, their lowest league finish in half a century, and lost the Europa League final to Tottenham Hotspur.
-Reuters
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