League leaders Liverpool secured a 3-1 victory against bottom-placed Southampton, with Mohamed Salah converting two penalties, while Nottingham Forest achieved a significant 1-0 triumph over Manchester City to boost their Champions League aspirations.
Liverpool extended their advantage at the summit to 16 points, despite an underwhelming first-half display. Following their successful 1-0 Champions League win against Paris Saint-Germain, Liverpool manager Arne Slot selected three different players but was forced to make three substitutions at half-time to revitalise his team.
Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!
Despite Southampton amassing merely nine points from 28 fixtures this season, they surprised Anfield when Will Smallbone scored just before the break. A miscommunication between Alisson Becker and Virgil van Dijk allowed Smallbone to tap into an empty net.
Slot responded by introducing Harvey Elliott, Alexis MacAllister, and Andy Robertson after the interval, which resulted in two goals within three minutes before the hour mark. Darwin Nunez equalised with a well-taken finish from Luis Diaz’s delivery, before Salah converted a penalty after Nunez was fouled in the box. The Egyptian striker sealed the win with another spot-kick two minutes before full-time, bringing his season’s goal tally to 32.
Arsenal, in second place, have two matches in hand over the leaders, starting with Sunday’s away fixture at Manchester United. Liverpool appear destined to secure their second league championship in 35 years.
Elsewhere, Nottingham Forest opened a four-point gap over third-placed City after Callum Hudson-Odoi’s late winner at the City Ground. The former Chelsea winger beat Ederson with seven minutes remaining, courtesy of Morgan Gibbs-White’s assist, sparking celebrations as Forest defeated the English champions for the first time since 1997.
The two-time European champions have not played in the continent’s elite club competition since 1980 but are edging closer to qualification. A top-five finish may be enough due to English teams’ strong European performances this season.
City remain in fourth place, vulnerable after suffering their ninth league defeat of the campaign. Pep Guardiola’s side now face the prospect of being overtaken by Chelsea, who host struggling Leicester on Sunday.
Crystal Palace overcame Jean-Philippe Mateta’s serious ear injury to defeat Ipswich 1-0, courtesy of Ismaila Sarr’s strike. Palace have now won nine of their last eleven matches across all competitions, climbing to eleventh place.
Brighton also enhanced their Champions League prospects as Joao Pedro’s dramatic 98th-minute penalty secured a 2-1 win against Fulham. Raul Jimenez’s superb opener had given Fulham the lead before Jean Paul van Hecke equalised before half-time. Pedro’s late heroics lifted Brighton to sixth, just one point behind City in fourth.
