Football: Man City crush Chelsea in FA Cup, Villa upset by Stevenage

LONDON -- Manchester City piled pressure on Chelsea boss Graham Potter as Riyad Mahrez inspired a 4-0 rout in the FA Cup third round, while Aston Villa crashed to a stunning 2-1 defeat against fourth tier Stevenage on Sunday.

After Premier League sides Newcastle, Nottingham Forest and Bournemouth were humiliated by lower-league opposition on Saturday, Villa were rocked by Stevenage's two-goal blast in the final minutes.

Premier League champions City rarely suffer such embarrassment and they made the strongest possible start by dismissing abject Chelsea with contemptuous ease at the Etihad Stadium.

Pep Guardiola made seven changes from the City side that won 1-0 at Chelsea in the Premier League on Thursday.

But City were still far too dynamic for struggling Chelsea as Mahrez struck with a brilliant free-kick and a late penalty, with Julian Alvarez and Phil Foden also scoring.

In the fourth round, City will host Premier League leaders Arsenal or third-tier Oxford, who meet on Monday.

City had already eliminated Chelsea from the League Cup this season and the west London club's first FA Cup third-round exit since 1998 was another blow to a season in danger of spiraling out of control.

While it is probably too early for Potter to be fearing the sack, just four months after he arrived from Brighton to replace the axed Thomas Tuchel, the 47-year-old might be having a few sleepless nights as he wrestles with his team's woeful form.

Chelsea have won just three of their last 12 games in all competitions and sit 10th in the Premier League, 10 points adrift of the top four place the club's American owners would surely have expected Potter to deliver.

"The results in a small space of time are not positive. You can make excuses and look for reasons or say it isn't good enough. Both of those answers are correct," Potter said.

"We have to keep improving and stick together because clearly we are suffering as a football club and it's not nice at all."

Potter will hardly have been comforted by the sound of Chelsea fans chanting Tuchel's name as they pine for the German who led them to Champions league glory in 2021.

"I would tell (Chelsea co-owner) Todd Boehly to give Graham Potter time. All coaches need time. At Barca, I didn't need two seasons, but that's because I had Messi," Guardiola said.

Given Chelsea's predicament it was curious that Potter elected to make six changes, with Bashir Humphreys given his debut and fellow teenager Lewis Hall also starting.

Mahrez had scored the winner against Chelsea on Thursday and this time he bent a superb free-kick into the top corner in the 23rd minute.

- Woeful Chelsea -

City's second goal was a gift from Chelsea forward Kai Havertz, who punched the ball as he challenged Aymeric Laporte at a corner, with Alvarez converting the 30th minute penalty.

Chelsea were being torn apart and Foden hit the third goal in the 38th minute, the England forward finishing off Kyle Walker's cross.

Beaten in the last three FA Cup finals, Chelsea's misery was compounded in the 85th minute as Mahrez scored from the spot after Kalidou Koulibaly fouled Foden.

Villa had eight changes against Stevenage and the team currently second in League Two took full advantage.

Morgan Sanson put Villa ahead in the 33rd minute but Jamie Reid equalized with an 88th minute penalty after Leander Dendoncker was sent off for fouling Dean Campbell.

And Campbell sparked wild Stevenage celebrations in the 90th minute when he smashed home from a short corner. 

"It is really special. The chairman just said to me it's the greatest day in his life and he's been with the club for over 20 years," said Stevenage boss Steve Evans, whose side face Championship team Stoke in the fourth round.

Villa boss Unai Emery added: "I'm really sorry for the supporters. Today was really so disappointing."

Leeds escaped with a dramatic 2-2 draw at Cardiff thanks to teenager Sonny Perkins' stoppage-time equalizer after the second tier side raced into a two-goal lead. 

Agence France-Presse

Football: Havertz seals controversial Chelsea win, Man City held by Villa

LONDON -- Kai Havertz scored the late winner as big-spending Chelsea fought back for a controversial 2-1 win against West Ham, while Manchester City were held to a 1-1 draw after Leon Bailey snatched a late equalizer for struggling Aston Villa on Saturday.

Having embarked on a £250 million ($280 million) spending spree in the summer transfer window, Chelsea are expected to deliver on their new owners' eye-watering investment.

The early returns had been mixed as Chelsea crashed to defeats against Leeds and Southampton.

So when Michail Antonio gave West Ham a shock 62nd minute lead with a close-range finish, the critics were sharpening their knives at Stamford Bridge.

But Ben Chilwell equalized in the 76th minute, just three minutes after the England left-back replaced Marc Cucurella.

Chilwell headed Thiago Silva's lofted ball past his marker, spun around and poked his shot through Lukasz Fabianski's legs from a tight angle.

Havertz cleverly finished off Chilwell's cross to complete Chelsea's escape in the 88th minute of a thrilling finale.

There was still more drama as Maxwel Cornet appeared to equalize in stoppage time, only for the goal to be controversially disallowed by VAR for Jarrod Bowen's foul on Edouard Mendy.

Thomas Tuchel's side remain unconvincing but they are up to fifth place after their third win in six games, while West Ham boss David Moyes was livid with the officials for denying his team a point.

"The goalkeeper comes to take it, and actually fumbles it out of his hands five or six yards, so he could never recover it. Then he acted as if he had a shoulder injury. I'm amazed that VAR sent the referee for him to see it," Moyes said.

"But I thought even if he goes to the TV there's no way he's overturning this, because this is a goal. It was a ridiculously bad decision. The sad thing is this is the level of the weak refereeing at the moment."

Erling Haaland has been remarkably prolific since his £51 million move from Borussia Dortmund in the close season and he struck again in the second half at Villa Park.

The Norway striker's 10th goal in his first six Premier League games gave him a share of the record with Micky Quinn, who hit the same tally for Coventry in 1992.

But Pep Guardiola's side were punished for failing to build on their lead as Bailey's blistering finish left the champions frustrated.

- Spectacular Pickford -

In the goalless Merseyside derby at Goodison Park, there was more VAR intrigue as Conor Coady thought he had put Everton ahead against Liverpool with a close-range finish from Neal Maupay's shot in the second half.

But Coady's goal was correctly disallowed for offside after a VAR check.

There could easily have been goals aplenty but for a man of the match display from Everton keeper Jordan Pickford and some fine stops from his Liverpool counterpart Alisson Becker.

"Wow, what can you do? It was a great derby, super intense, with a lot of really spectacular saves," Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp said.

"We hit the post three times and Pickford made so many saves."

Everton are now without a victory in their first six games this term, while Liverpool's momentum was checked after winning their previous two matches.

Unbeaten Tottenham made it four wins from six games with a 2-1 victory against Fulham in north London.

Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg broke the deadlock for Tottenham in the 40th minute, sweeping home from Richarlison's pass.

Harry Kane increased Tottenham's lead in the 74th minute from Ryan Sessegnon's cross to become the third highest goal-scorer in Premier League history, with 188 goals taking him past Andy Cole.

Only Alan Shearer (260) and Wayne Rooney (208) are now above Kane in the scoring chart.

Kane's goal also moved him level with Thierry Henry's tally of 43 in Premier League London derbies.

Fulham's Aleksandar Mitrovic curled home in the 82nd minute, but Tottenham held firm.

Managerless Bournemouth came back from two goals down to win 3-2 in a thriller at Nottingham Forest.

Ivan Toney scored a hat-trick as Brentford beat Leeds 5-2 at the Community Stadium.

Daniel Podence scored as Wolves beat Southampton 1-0 at Molineux for their first league victory this season.

Newcastle and Crystal Palace drew 0-0 at St James' Park.

Agence France-Presse

Football: Kerr double keeps Chelsea two points clear of Man City

Chelsea striker Sam Kerr struck twice in a 2-0 home win over Aston Villa on Sunday to restore a two-point lead at the top of the Women's Super League, with Fran Kirby setting up both goals.

Kerr put the hosts in front after 24 minutes, outmuscling Asmita Ale to get a glancing header on Kirby's pinpoint cross, and the Australian sealed the three points with her second in the 57th minute, again assisted by England midfielder Kirby.

Chelsea regained first place after Manchester City briefly went top following their 1-0 victory over Reading on Saturday thanks to an 87th-minute winner from Chloe Kelly.

Earlier on Saturday, Lauren James and Christen Press helped Manchester United beat bottom side West Ham United 2-0 in the first WSL game to be played at Old Trafford, while Arsenal thumped Tottenham Hotspur 3-0 away in the north London derby.

Bristol City's recent good form continued on Sunday as they drew 1-1 with visiting Birmingham City to stay ahead of West Ham and Villa at the foot of the table, while Hayley Raso netted a hat-trick in Everton's 5-0 demolition of Brighton & Hove Albion.

With four games left Chelsea lead the table on 47 points ahead of Manchester City with 45 and nine in front of Manchester United. Arsenal are fourth on 35 points with a game in hand.

(Reporting by Philip O'Connor; Editing by Ken Ferris)

-reuters-

Man City, Arsenal the big winners in dramatic finale

LONDON - Manchester City secured fourth place and Arsenal overhauled their arch-rivals Tottenham Hotspur to come second on a dramatic final day of the Premier League season when a bomb scare rocked Old Trafford on Sunday.

After Manchester United's game against Bournemouth was abandoned due to a security alert, Manchester City drew 1-1 at Swansea City, Arsenal crushed Aston Villa 4-0 and Spurs capitulated 5-1 at 10-man Newcastle United to blow their chance of finishing above their neighbours for the first time since 1995.

"First of all I would like to apologise to our fans," Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino said.

"I think they don't deserve all that happened today on the pitch and I apologise."

Champions Leicester City drew 1-1 at Chelsea to end the campaign 10 points ahead of the chasing pack, another staggering achievement in a remarkable season for Claudio Ranieri's team.

Manchester City needed a point to make sure of claiming the final Champions League qualifying spot but their game at Swansea started in a strange atmosphere caused by the events at Old Trafford.

Two stands were evacuated 20 minutes ahead of kickoff and the game was abandoned shortly before the scheduled 1400 GMT start. A controlled explosion was later carried out on a suspect package, described by police as "an incredibly lifelike explosive device".

Manchester City made the perfect start when Kelechi Iheanacho fired them ahead after five minutes.

Swansea equalised on the stroke of halftime through Andre Ayew's deflected free kick and the visitors endured a few nervy moments in Manuel Pellegrini's last match in charge before celebrating the point they needed.

"Well into this season we were well in the title race, but we let ourselves down, we will take positives of a trophy and semi-final of the Champions League, which was history for our club," City goalkeeper Joe Hart said.

"I have enjoyed our time under Manuel, it was important we finished off a good three years working with him."

DISMAL AFTERNOON

Spurs, Leicester's closest challengers in the last few weeks, endured a dismal afternoon at relegated Newcastle.

Georginio Wijnaldum and Aleksandar Mitrovic put the hosts 2-0 up at halftime before Erik Lamela pulled one back.

Mitrovic was shown a straight red card for a dangerous foul but Wijnaldum scored his second from the penalty spot and Rolando Aarons and Daryl Janmaat completed the scoring at a disbelieving St James' Park.

Arsenal took an early lead against relegated Villa through Olivier Giroud and the French striker added two late goals to complete his hat-trick before Mark Bunn's stoppage-time own goal completed the rout.

Arsene Wenger's side finished in the top two for the first time since 2005 after a difficult campaign in which the French manager has been heavily criticised.

"We kept our togetherness and that is part of the DNA of this club," said Wenger, who led his team into the Champions League for the 19th consecutive season.

"We kept fighting until the end. Many big teams finished outside the top four this year."

Cesc Fabregas's second-half penalty for Chelsea looked set to condemn Leicester to only their fourth defeat of the season but Danny Drinkwater rescued a point for the champions with a stunning long-distance strike.

"It was a warm welcome for me, it was fantastic at the beginning and the end," Ranieri said on his return to his former club.

"A draw is OK because we have only lost three times this season and that is an amazing achievement."

Southampton climbed to fifth with a 4-1 victory over FA Cup finalists Crystal Palace and West Ham United's hopes of a top-six finish ended following a 2-1 loss at Stoke City.

(Editing by Toby Davis)

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

PREMIER LEAGUE: Arsenal draw to go top, United win at Liverpool

LONDON - Arsenal ended Leicester City's brief stay at the top of the Premier League on Sunday despite being held to a 0-0 draw at Stoke City after Manchester United's Wayne Rooney struck late for a 1-0 win at Liverpool.

Arsenal, despite a raft of injuries, moved ahead of Leicester, who drew 1-1 at Aston Villa on Saturday. Both teams have 44 points from 22 matches but the London side's goal difference is three better than the Foxes.

Manchester City are a point behind the leading pair after they beat Crystal Palace 4-0 on Saturday, while Tottenham Hotspur complete the top four with 39 points following their 4-1 home win over Sunderland also on Saturday.

Manchester United are next on 37 points, moving up one place after Rooney's 78th minute volley gave them victory at arch-rivals Liverpool in a drab north-west derby which improved slightly after the break following a poor first half.

Rooney struck after a header by Marouane Fellaini rebounded straight to him off the bar with the United skipper giving keeper Simon Mignolet no chance with his ferocious strike.

Arsenal, ravaged by injuries and without in-form playmaker Mesut Ozil, their latest casualty with a slight foot problem, on Sunday, have not won at Stoke for six years but came close to ending that run with three excellent attempts.

However, they could not find a way past young England international keeper Jack Butland who made important saves from Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Olivier Giroud, twice.

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger, who has seen his side beaten three times at Stoke in the last five seasons, said he was pleased with a point after dropping two to a last-minute equaliser in a 3-3 draw at Liverpool on Wednesday.

"We have had two very physical games in four days away from home. Stoke wanted to surprise us and made it very physical from the start and we had to fight," he told Sky Sports.

Arsenal keeper Petr Cech, the Man of the Match, was far busier in the second half, denying Marko Arnautovic twice, Bojan Krkic and Joselu as Stoke poured forward looking for a third successive home league win over the Gunners.

Stoke remain seventh with 33 points.

DRAB DERBY

Most of the build-up on Sunday was focused on the Liverpool versus United clash, hailed by the media as the biggest rivalry in English soccer between two clubs who have won 38 domestic league titles between them.

In reality, though, it lacked all the intensity of games in the past when both were challenging for the title or top four places with the defeat leaving Liverpool trailing in ninth place, eight points behind the Champions League spots.

"I didn't see too many chances for Manchester United and we didn't take ours. Of course it is frustrating," Liverpool manager Juergen Klopp told the BBC.

"We lost in a derby against Manchester United so I can't be very positive at this moment so soon after the game."

United manager Louis van Gaal added: "We have made a good start in 2016, to beat Liverpool for the second time in a row is marvellous, it gives a big boost for the players and the fans so I hope we shall continue with winning.

"That is why we are here, to win our games and at the end of the season to be in the first three positions in the league."

Rooney's winner was his 176th league goal for United, a record for a player for one club in the Premier League era, following his 15 league goals for Everton at the start of his career.

His United total has eclipsed the previous record of 175 set by Thierry Henry for Arsenal in his two spells in north London between 1999 and 2012.

(Reporting by Mike Collett; Editing by Ken Ferris)

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com