Premier League
Premier League top three need penalties to scrape wins
Premier League leaders Manchester City and title challengers Liverpool and Chelsea all needed penalties to secure victories on Saturday, leaving the top of the table unchanged.
Manchester City beat Wolverhampton Wanderers at the Etihad thanks to a Raheem Sterling spot kick after a controversial penalty award.
Liverpool also won by a single goal against Aston Villa, managed by former Anfield favourite Steven Gerrard, with the visitors upset at the decision to award a penalty when Mohamed Salah went down in the box before converting the 67th minute winner.
Chelsea midfielder Jorginho scored twice from the spot, including a stoppage time winner, as Thomas Tuchel’s side beat Leeds United 3-2 at Stamford Bridge.
England forward Sterling’s 100th Premier League goal was just enough to earn leaders City victory over 10-man Wolves.
Wolves had limited City in the opening period before their striker Raul Jimenez’s dismissal for two yellow cards in quick succession in first-half stoppage time shifted the odds against them.
City dominated from then on, edging in front through Sterling’s penalty – a decision that required a lengthy VAR check – in the 66th minute with the ball striking Joao Moutinho.
Referee Jon Moss ruled the ball had hit the Portuguese midfielder’s arm and although the television images suggested it had struck him in the upper ribs, VAR backed the on-field decision.
Down the East Lancs Road at Anfield was a surprisingly low-key reception for Gerrard, the Liverpool-born former captain and Champions League winner, before a game where his Villa team set about frustrating the home side.
Liverpool dominated the first half with Villa keeper Emiliano Martinez doing well to save efforts from Andy Robertson and Salah.
After the break, Martinez produced a brilliant reflex stop to keep out a powerful header from Virgil van Dijk but Liverpool’s pressure finally paid off when Salah went down in the box under challenge from Tyrone Mings.
The Egyptian fired home an unstoppable spot-kick to secure the win for Juergen Klopp’s side.
“We’ve lost to a soft penalty because if you watch it properly, Tyrone’s been fouled first,” said Gerrard.
“The disappointing thing is that the referee hasn’t gone to look at it,” he added.
Chelsea could ill-afford another slip-up, after last week’s loss at West Ham United but they were pushed all the way by Leeds, before ending up with a 3-2 home win.
Leeds went ahead against the run of play in the 28th minute when Daniel James went down under a challenge by Marcos Alonso to win a penalty that Brazilian playmaker Raphinha stroked home.
But the Blues clawed their way back into the game when Alonso, trying to atone for his earlier error, stole the ball from Stuart Dallas, exchanged passes with Timo Werner and crossed for Mason Mount to score with a first-time angled shot.
Tuchel’s men turned the game around when referee Chris Kavanagh, after a VAR check, awarded them a penalty after a Raphinha challenge on Antonio Rudiger and Jorginho fired high into the net.
Chelsea were then caught out in the 83rd minute when 19-year-old Joe Gelhardt, barely on the field as a substitute, connected with a Tyler Roberts cross to score his first league goal.
But just when the Blues looked like they had slipped further behind in the title race, Rudiger went down under a challenge by Mateusz Klich and Jorginho slotted home.
Arsenal weathered storms on and off the pitch before coasting to a 3-0 Premier League win over Southampton on Saturday as boss Mikel Arteta dropped captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang from the match-day squad for disciplinary reasons.
Southampton were on top in the early stages but the Gunners broke through in the 21st minute with Alexandre Lacazette finishing off a sweeping break.
Goals from midfielder Martin Odegaard and defender Gabriel made sure of the win for Arsenal, who are fifth on 26 points.
Manchester United were at Norwich City later on Saturday.
-Reuters
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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